Dr. Michael J. McCarthy Announces Mechanicville City School District Secures $572,000 Energy Saving Grant

            The Mechanicville High School and Mechanicville Middle School were both awarded $286,000 for the installation of photovoltaic systems.  Funding for the project(s) is through the Federal Government’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. 

The Mechanicville City School District has a history of attempting to reduce costs through energy saving initiatives.       In 2004, the District initiated a five-phase Energy Performance Project which projects savings of $70,000 per year over an eighteen year period for a total savings of $1.2 million.  Currently, the District is a participant of a six school Energy Conservation Program as a result of a COSER Agreement with the Capital Region BOCES Consortium.  A Building Energy Specialist has been assigned to our District to audit our energy usage, and after a period of evaluation, to implement changes which will assist the employees and our District overall to become more energy efficient.

            The recently awarded NYSERDA, ARRA Grants secured by our District are projected to save $9,000 per year each, or approximately $18,000 per year total.  The grants are part of $6.7 million of stimulus funding for energy conservation.  As an additional stimulation to the economy, several jobs will be created during the installation phase of these projects, while at the same time, schools will realize savings as a result of the increased energy efficiency.

            The Mechanicville City School District has initiated the    Energy Performance Project, Energy Conservation and Building Management COSER, and the NYSERDA, ARRA Photovoltaic Project  in an focused effort to reduce its energy consumption, which will lower the tax burden for our constituents.  The installation of our new photovoltaic system, which is a solar panel-like system, may also create innovative teaching opportunities for our Science Department.  These projects were competitively selected  under the State Energy Program by NYSERDA. 

            Dr. McCarthy thanks and commends Business Manager, Mrs. Joanne Moran, for her assistance in the extensive application process.    The securing of this additional grant money is a welcome addition to the energy cost-saving measures already in place in our District.  As always, the District remains committed to operating the facilities in the most efficient manner possible and seeking alternative funding sources to assist in this endeavor. 

                                                  Dr. Michael J. McCarthy

                                                  Superintendent of Schools