DALLAS, Texas - Using an innovative financing approach, the Muenster, Texas, Independent School District (ISD) partnered with NextEra Energy Solutions to upgrade lighting, replace aging HVAC equipment, and deliver a significantly improved educational environment for Muenster ISD students. The renovations, which were done at no additional cost to District taxpayers and completed in a span of just two months, are predicted to deliver tens of thousands of dollars a year in savings.
The Muenster ISD faced challenges familiar to school districts throughout the country. Aging infrastructure, limited capital budgets, and expanding student demand had all placed a burden on the District as it prepared for the school semester. It was clear that improvements were needed. What was not clear was how to get them accomplished in just two months without a bond referendum or other tax-based solution.
Working closely with the District, NextEra Energy Solutions did the work under a performance contracting agreement. This means that the entire cost of the project will be paid through savings generated by the energy efficient upgrades and rebates from the local utility, imposing no upfront capital costs on the District or additional burdens on local taxpayers.
The contract guarantees over $240,000 in energy savings, reduced maintenance costs, and capital cost avoidance over the term of the agreement. NextEra Energy Solutions was also able to help Muenster secure approximately $20,000 in utility rebates.
Renovations were completed from July 2012 to August 2012 to create as little disruption to school year activities as possible. In that time new split-system, high-efficiency HVAC units were added, markedly improving environmental conditions and saving energy. Programmable thermostats were installed in many areas, and lighting was improved throughout the district. In all, over 828 light fixtures were replaced or upgraded.
The renovation program also delivered other tangible benefits besides energy conservation and reduced maintenance costs for older equipment. Students and staff throughout the district now enjoy brighter, more consistent and uniform light levels in all buildings that were upgraded. In addition, lighting for the school’s competition gymnasium now meets the Texas University Interscholastic School League standards. Energy efficient floodlights, which will improve security and safety in outdoor areas of the school facilities, were also added as part of the project.
Muenster District Superintendent Clay Richerson said, “The school environment for our students and our teachers has been greatly improved.”
The improvements encompassed a number of facilities at Muenster including: the administration building, the high school, the gymnasium, the athletic training center and the third and fourth grade instructional facility.
“With NextEra Energy Solutions’ help, we were able to make these improvements without asking for additional capital support from our local population,” said School Board President Steve Trubenbach. “The fact that NextEra Energy Solutions was able to help us save over $240,000 and complete the work in just two months with no disruption to our school schedule and no capital cost to the District is nothing short of amazing.”
NextEra Energy Solutions
NextEra Energy Solutions provides innovative energy efficiency, water conservation and renewable solutions for municipal, education, healthcare, federal government, commercial and industrial customers. NextEra Energy Solutions is an indirect subsidiary of NextEra Energy Inc. (NYSE NEE), a leading clean energy company with revenues of more than $15.3 billion, more than 41,000 megawatts of generating capacity, and approximately 15,000 employees in 24 states and Canada as of year-end 2011. Headquartered in Juno Beach, Fla., NextEra Energy’s principal subsidiaries are Florida Power & Light Company, which serves approximately 4.6 million customer accounts in Florida and is one of the largest rate-regulated electric utilities in the country, and NextEra Energy Resources, LLC, which together with its affiliated entities is the largest generator in the United States of renewable energy from the wind and sun. For more information, please visit www.NextEraEnergySolutions.com.