Wayne Trace Solar
District Solar Brief · A Community Briefing

Not just a solar project.
A school-owned energy asset.

A long-term budget hedge and a hands-on STEM & workforce platform for Wayne Trace students — district-owned, no lease, no third party.

Wayne Trace already helps power Ohio through local wind and energy production. This project lets the district itself benefit from that economy — turning utility spending into long-term educational infrastructure the community can see and learn from.

Prepared for the Wayne Trace board & community
For preliminary discussion · Paulding County, OH
$242K
Spent on power every year
$1.2M
Net cost after federal payment
$178K
Saved per year once running
7–8 yrs
Until it pays for itself
★The Case · In Plain English

What this is, and why it matters.

Wayne Trace spends about a quarter-million dollars a year on electricity — and that bill only rises. This project asks a simple question: instead of renting power from the utility forever, what if the district owned the equipment that makes it?

01

A budget hedge

Today's bill roughly doubles in 15 years at typical utility inflation. A district-owned array locks in much of that cost — protecting the classroom budget from rate increases for decades.

02

An owned asset

No lease and no third party. The district owns the systems outright. After they pay for themselves in 7–8 years, the power runs nearly free on equipment built to last 30.

03

A federal payment

A refundable federal credit pays roughly 40% of the cost back to the district — available to public entities as a direct payment, not a tax write-off. Timing matters: the window to qualify is closing.

04

A learning platform

The same array becomes a living STEM lab and a workforce-development platform — real data, real careers, visible to the whole community.

Doing nothing
  • Keep renting power from the utility
  • Exposed to every future rate increase
  • ~$9M in projected utility payments over 20 years
  • No asset, no student benefit at the end
Owning the solar asset
  • ~$1.2M net after the federal payment
  • Cost locked in — insulated from rate hikes
  • Saves ~$178K/yr; pays back in 7–8 years
  • A 30-year asset and a STEM platform for students

Illustrative estimates for preliminary discussion. Final values should be updated after firm bids and interval-data review.

01What the District Pays Now

Three buildings, one rising electric bill — about a quarter-million dollars a year.

Building / UtilityElectricity / yrProposed Solar
High SchoolPPEC / Buckeye Power
~$126,000
500 kW
Payne ElementaryAEP Ohio
~$59,000
275 kW
Grover Hill ElementaryAEP Ohio
~$57,000
275 kW
District Total
~$242,000 / yr
1,050 kW
02Cost of the Arrays

The federal direct-pay credit covers 40% — the district owns the systems outright.

Total installed cost~$2,100,000
Federal direct-pay incentive (40%)– $840,000
Net cost to district~$1.2M
Net to district
~$1.2M
Conservative planning estimate. No lease, no third party — the district owns the systems. At likely bid pricing (~$1.75/W), payback shortens by about a year.
03What They'll Save

Roughly $178,000 a year back into the classroom.

High School
$78Ksaved per year
Payback~8 yrs
Grover Hill
$50Ksaved per year
Payback~7 yrs
Payne
$50Ksaved per year
Payback~7 yrs

20-Year Budget Exposure

Utility dependence vs. district-owned energy infrastructure
Assumed utility rate increase / year6.0%
3%4%5%6%7%
Keep paying the utility~$0
Projected over 20 years
Own the solar asset~$1.2M
Net, after incentive
What ownership avoids over 20 years
~$0

Drag the slider to test the assumption. At ~6% annual utility inflation, today's ~$242,000 bill roughly doubles within 12–13 years if the district stays fully exposed to utility rates. After payback, the district runs on nearly free power for 20+ years on equipment built to last 30. Illustrative estimates for preliminary discussion.

★Where the Arrays Go

This isn't hypothetical — here's the plan for each building.

Preliminary ground-mount layouts on district-owned land at each site, sited to use open space without touching fields, parking, or play areas. Final positioning follows engineering and an interconnection review.

Aerial view of Wayne Trace High School campus showing proposed ground-mount solar array southeast of the building near the track
500 kWProposed array
Site 01 · Largest

Wayne Trace High School

PPEC / Buckeye Power

A ground-mount array on the open grass southeast of the building — clear of the track, ball fields, and bus loop, with a short run to the building's service.

500 kW
System size
~$126K
Current bill / yr
~$78K
Est. saved / yr
Site 02

Payne Elementary

AEP Ohio

Rows set on the green space beside the building, clear of the playground and bus lane. A compact footprint that keeps the active areas of campus untouched.

275 kW
System size
~$59K
Current bill / yr
~$50K
Est. saved / yr
Aerial view of Payne Elementary showing proposed solar panel rows on the green space beside the building, away from the playground and buses
275 kWProposed array
Aerial view of Grover Hill Elementary showing an L-shaped proposed solar array in the open field west of the building, labeled 434 PV modules
275 kWProposed array
Site 03

Grover Hill Elementary

AEP Ohio

An L-shaped array on the open field west of the building — the most room of the three sites, leaving plenty of buffer. Preliminary layout drops in 434 panels.

275 kW
System size
434
PV modules
~$50K
Est. saved / yr

The Bottom Line

About $1.2 million after incentives, saving roughly $178,000 a year, paying off in about 7–8 years — worst case. Compared with roughly $9M in projected utility payments over 20 years, the district owns the systems after payback and runs on nearly free power for two-plus decades. Every dollar that stops going to the utility can go back into educating Wayne Trace students.