District 300 takes step toward wind power

Community Unit District 300 moved a step closer to formalizing a school district consortium to explore the creation of a wind farm in downstate Illinois.

School board members on Monday signed an intergovernmental agreement with Prospect Heights Elementary District 23 and Keeneyville Elementary District 20, to define and govern the group.

So far, the Districts 20 and 300 have signed the intergovernmental agreement; District 23 is expected to sign later this month.

Signing the agreement does not commit the school district to the proposal; it simply allows the bodies to create a feasibility study, district officials said.

"This is truly the first step in saying, 'OK, let's move forward,'" District 300 Energy Management Coordinator Dave Ulm said. "Now we have the authority to work as a group. Once we have the intergovernmental agreement, potential contractors and consultants will take us seriously. Before it was all talk."

School board member John Ryan said the wind farm proposal "makes good sense."

"The board as a whole is conscious of the fiscal responsibility the district has to its constituents," Ryan said. "If we can cut down on energy costs, then we can accomplish other things without a further burden on taxpayers."

It is estimated that harnessing wind energy could save the district more than $3 million per year.