Osseo District Schools to Install Solar Panels
The Osseo School District expects to save millions of dollars with solar panels. The school district voted on a project to install panels on many of its buildings during December meetings.
Thirteen Osseo School buildings will each get a 3,200-square-foot solar array installed on roofs. The district is following a growing trend among businesses, schools and cities turning to alternative energy sources.
Osseo Area Schools will partner with iDeal Energies, the company that will do the installation. The panels have a 40-year life expectancy, which could end up saving the district $4.5 million.
iDeal Energies provides the panels at no charge. The district will then pay for the solar energy at a discounted rate for a period of ten years. Solar panel installation will take place at the following district buildings:
- Edinbrook Elementary
- Fair Oaks Elementary
- Garden City Elementary
- North View Middle
- Palmer Lake Elementary
- Park Brook Elementary
- Park Center Senior High
- Zanewood Elementary
- Osseo Area Learning Center
- Birch Grove Elementary
- Osseo Education Center
- Brooklyn Middle
- Crest View Elementary
School officials say the project could also be used as academic learning.
“Part of the partnership with iDeal Energies is they have a curriculum component. They developed a curriculum based on state standards, so we anticipate that some of our physics class, some of our engineering classes may be able to partner with this curriculum to look at how that solar energy is produced and doing those calculations,” said Ron Meyer, the district’s executive director of finance and operations.
Solar panels will be installed by the end of this year. The Minnesota Department of Commerce says solar energy has been steadily increasing since 2012.
