MIFFLINTOWN — Once again, time is running out if the Juniata County School District Board of Trustees wants to create a solar energy system for the district.

After listening carefully to a presentation from representatives of Harrisburg-based GreenWorks Development LLC in November 2022, school board members voted on a contract proposal, citing the need to gather additional information on the topic. The topic of solar energy was also brought up several times without the board taking action.

Now that the application window has opened for the new school solar grant program, Christie Holderman, superintendent of schools for the Juniata County School District, is optimistic that the school board will re-evaluate the feasibility of creating of a solar program to ease soaring energy costs.

“I hope there will be more discussions” »Holderman said.

Applications for S4S’s Solar for Schools grant program will be accepted from November 1, 2024 through January 31, 2025, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) website.

The S4S program was created on July 17, 2024 by DCED, as part of the Solar for Schools Act. The program was created to help schools across the Commonwealth reduce the costs of implementing solar energy systems.

To achieve this goal, DCED has established a grant program that school districts, midstream units, charter schools, area vocational and technical schools, and community colleges can use to fund energy programs solar.

The grants are designed to help with the purchase and installation of equipment, permit fees, energy storage and utility interconnection, the website states.

As of November 2022, Doug Neidich, CEO of GreenWorks Development, said six Juniata County School District properties could handle solar panels. GreenWorks’ proposal to install six solar panels could produce 115 percent of the district’s annual electricity consumption.

At the time, with electricity costs expected to continually rise and the December 2022 deadline looming for a $1.5 million rebate, Neidich said the school district could benefit from the rebate if the board approved a contract. “tonight or tomorrow.”

Under the plan, the district would lease the solar panels to a group of investors for five years. Beginning in sixth grade, the district could purchase the program directly.

School board members held off voting on a GreenWorks contract proposal until they could gather additional information on the subject. The amount of the rebate continued to decline and deadlines passed without any action being taken on the matter.

In January 2024, school officials revived the idea of ​​creating a solar program. Energy costs continue to skyrocket as school officials said the district’s 2023 electric bill is about $350,000.

Richard Meily, business manager for the Juniata County School District, warned: “If we do nothing, we will have to double our electricity costs”

Meily warned of anticipated increases in electricity rates. “With solar energy, we can produce more than 100% and sell it back to the grid. »

Meily said nearby schools, like the Midd-West School District, have already transitioned to solar energy. “They reduced electricity costs” » added Meily. “We are locked up for 23 months.”

Now, the availability of more discounts could lead to further discussions on the issue.