Elk Mound school district schedules open house for Thursday, October 27
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
ELK MOUND — It takes a while to complete $15 million in referendum construction projects, but now the time has come.
The Elk Mound school district has scheduled an open house for October 27 so that people can see the result of the work put into construction and remodeling, said Eric Wright, school district administrator.
Wright gave an update on the construction projects to the Elk Mound Board of Education at the September 19 meeting.
There are still a few items on backorder which are the result of supply chain issues, and there are still a few punch list items to take care of, he said.
Some of the areas that visitors at the open house will be able to see include the woodworking and metal shops at Elk Mound High School; the new high school band room; the new Elk Mound Middle School gymnasium; the remodel of the old middle school gymnasium into classrooms; the updated high school locker rooms; the high school weight room; and the athletic field improvements.
The open house on Thursday, October 27, will be from 5:30 p.m.to 7 p.m.
Voters in the Elk Mound school district approved the $15 million referendum question in April of 2020.
Bus purchase
The Elk Mound Board of Education also discussed purchasing a new bus.
The bus is included in the budget for the 2022-2023 school year, but the cost of buses has been increasing since the budget was set and prices are now “way higher,” Wright said.
The plan to is to complete the purchase during the current fiscal year, he said.
Since it takes a much longer time to order equipment and receive it than it did before the pandemic, school board members agreed it would be a good idea to get bids on the school bus now rather than later, Wright said.
The purchase of a bus is expected to be on the Board of Education’s agenda for the October 24 meeting.
Solar farm
The proposed 300 megawatt Elk Creek Solar Project on 1,600 acres in the Town of Spring Brook has generated a number of questions from Wright and the Elk Mound Board of Education.
The proposed project is in the Elk Mound school district, and if the solar project is built, then the land would come off the tax roll and the school district would not receive property taxes from that particular parcel for the next 35 years, Wright said.
According to state law, the solar project would have to make annual payments to the Town of Spring Brook ($500,000) and to Dunn County ($700,000) — but school districts are not included in the state’s formula.
Representatives for Tyr Energy Development Renewables spoke to the Dunn County Board at the September 21 meeting and said they planned to make a voluntary donation of $60,000 per year to the Elk Mound school district.
While the life of the solar project is 35 years, TED Renewables has offered to pay the $60,000 per year to the school district for 20 years, Wright said.
While the $60,000 might make up for the property taxes now, in 20 years, who knows what the property tax rate will be? he said.
And why offer payments for 20 years when the life of the project is 35 years? Wright asked.
“I have additional questions to ask,” he said.
One of the questions asked by a supervisor on the Dunn County Board is why will the project be 35 years and not 40 or 50 years?
The answer is that the solar panels have a 35 year warranty, but that after 35 years, if the landowner wanted to extend the contract and the company wanted to replace the solar panels, the solar array could continue generating electricity for another 35 years.
Other business
In other business, the Elk Mound Board of Education:
• Approved renewing the contract with Kurt Van Schoonhoven for snow plowing.
• Approved the safety drill that was completed as per Act 143.
• Approved policy revisions and updates recommended by NEOLA.
Following a closed session, the Elk Mound School Board:
• Approved hiring Michael Nerbovig as the assistant powerlifting coach.
• Approved hiring Ronald Stillman as a special education teacher.
• Approved hiring Susan Huck as a full-time custodian.
