School renovations to save energy
By Kevin Kelley
Fairview Park
Published July 2, 2008

With energy costs at an all-time high, everyone is looking to cut back on usage and save money, including the Fairview Park City Schools.

In October 2007, the district contracted with H.E.A.T. Total Facility Solutions Inc. to identify ways to reduce energy consumption and utility costs.

Secondary objectives for the assessment were to reduce maintenance costs, increase operating efficiency lighting quality to help make the buildings more comfortable, and improve ventilation and air quality.

Renovation work, which is commencing this summer, will result in a savings to the district of $1.4 million over a 15-year period, district officials said.

“These renovations are just another example of how the district is moving forward,” Superintendent Brion Deitsch said. “Resources saved and derived from this work will allow the district to apply them towards providing a quality education to our students in an atmosphere conducive to learning.”

The work is being done thanks to a new state law by which improvements to save on energy or maintenance costs can be paid for through a loan, but the savings pay for the loan costs.

Deitsch said the district was pursuing the renovations at his state of the schools presentation back in February.

The majority of improvements will be made at Fairview High School, Mayer Middle School and the former Parkview Intermediate School, which now houses the board of education offices and the district’s Early Education Learning Center.

Improvements include replacing certain light fixtures with new energy efficient fluorescent fixtures, installing room occupancy sensors for lighting and temperature control, replacing incandescent exit signs with new LED exit signs, installing suspended ceilings at certain locations, installing occupancy sensors on refrigerated vending machines, providing a new Internet-based energy management system and replacing windows at the former Parkview Intermediate School.

In addition, one new high efficiency boiler will be added at Fairview High School.

Gilles-Sweet Elementary was built in 2007 with energy-saving fixtures heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, so minimal renovations will need to be made to the building, district officials said.