Bond issue to consider pellet heating system

    GUILFORD — SAD 4 voters will go to the polls on Tuesday, June 25 to decide whether to approve a $680,000 bond issue that would allow the district to replace high-cost heating oil with lower-cost biomass fuel beginning in December 2013.

    The bond issue would not increase local property tax assessments, as the annual debt service payments would be more than offset by reduced fuel costs — based on current pricing.
    Superintendent Paul Stearns says the project should pay for itself in less than eight years, based on current costs. Savings will vary depending upon the weather and fluctuations in fuel costs.
    The project includes: installation of pellet boilers and pellet storage silos at both Piscataquis Community Secondary School and Piscataquis Community Elementary School. Relocating one of the two high-efficiency 2006 Buderus oil-fired boilers that currently heat PCSS to PCES. Removal of the two H. B. Smith boilers that have been heating PCES since it was built in 1994.
    The end result will be one pellet boiler and one high-efficiency oil-fired boiler for each building. The pellet boilers will heat both buildings about 90 percent of the time. On the coldest days and during the “shoulder” season, the oil-fired boilers will kick in to provide additional heating capacity.
    The pellet boilers will fit inside the boiler rooms at both schools. The only difference that the public will see is a silo— similar to a grain silo — outside the boiler room at each school.
    Norris A. Preble, Inc. of Madison has been awarded the bid for the project — pending bond approval.  Five firms submitted bids. The Board of Directors voted on May 14 to issue warrants to the towns.
    A public information session on the bond issue and the project will be held at 7 p.m. on June 18 in the PCES cafeteria and the referendum will be held June 25.
    If the referendum is approved, the contract will be awarded to the winning bidder on June 28, and construction will begin July 8.  The new boilers are expected to be on line in December.
    The benefit of the project is that at present, pellet fuel is considerably cheaper than oil. The pellet units that have been approved in the bid specs may also be converted to burn wood chips if it becomes desirable to do so in the future, although it would require a different storage solution. The project design also allows the district to burn oil if it is the cheaper fuel at any given time.
    The district originally planned to hold a referendum on the project last January, but the preliminary design cost came in much higher than expected, primarily because of contingencies that were built into the cost estimate cover various styles of boiler, code and regulatory expenses and other construction variables.
    As a result, the board decided to delay the referendum and finish the design and bid phase. By finishing the design phase, they have been able to significantly reduce the anticipated cost of the project, thus reducing the projected payback period. In addition, voters now have the advantage of knowing exactly what the cost and components of the project will be as well as who will be doing the work.
    Side benefits to the project include a reduction in fossil fuel use, as well as using a product that is grown and manufactured in Maine.
    The district has been approved for $406,000 in Quality School Construction Bond funds. This is an instrument of the federal government designed to allow schools to borrow money at zero, or near zero, interest. The remainder of the project will be funded through traditional municipal lending sources.
    For specific information regarding any aspect of the project including financial details and other important considerations, log on to www.SAD4.com or call the superintendent’s office at 876-3444.