County plans to pepper buildings with solar panels

The Ozaukee County Administration Center, Justice Center and Highway Department building could soon be sporting arrays of solar panels on their roofs if plans to do so are approved by the County Board.

Officials say the project would pay for itself within 10 years and save the county about $40,000 a year in energy costs for another 15 years, the remaining warrantied life of the panels, for a total of $600,000 in savings.

The project would cost about $708,000,  but the net upfront cost to the county would be $400,000 after taking into account a 30% federal tax credit of $213,000 and a $95,000 Focus on Energy renewable energy incentive grant.

The three arrays would produce 397,000 kilowatt hours of energy per year, offsetting about 23% of the electrical costs at the Administration Center, 68% at the Highway Department and 7% at the Justice Center.

It’s estimated that the solar panels would offset 277 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year and 5.6% of the county government’s electrical use.

All three buildings are located in Port Washington.

Historically, local governments have not been eligible for federal tax credits but that changed with passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, county Policy and Budget Analyst Jason Wittek said.

Wittek said the arrays will be relatively unobtrusive because they would lie flatter than many other solar panels.

The proposed project is one of 13 capital projects, totaling $2.6 million, proposed by the board’s oversight committees that if approved would be paid for through the county’s capital reserves fund.

Other capital projects under consideration and their costs include:

• Remodeling courtrooms at the Justice Center, $258,200.

• Replacing Sheriff’s Office firearms, $88,179.

• A countywide financial management software implementation and contract with a vendor to help oversee the project, $990,000.

• Purchase and install security cameras and gates at Hawthorne Hills, Tendick and Virmond county parks, $120,500.

• Repaving the parking lot of the National Flag Day Foundation’s Americanism Center in Waubeka, $50,000.

• Campground and development of the Sugar Maple School site at Hawthorne Hills Park, $225,000.

• Countywide radio system upgrade, $600,000.

The county’s capital reserves are funded from end-of-year general fund surpluses, including sales tax revenue.

County Administrator Jason Dzwinel said the capital reserve fund currently stands at about $4 million, in part due to the influx of federal American Rescue Plan Act funds in recent years.

“There is probably more money in the (capital reserve) fund than we’ve had historically, thanks to ARPA funds,” Dzwinel said.

Dzwinel said the fund will continue to grow as the 2023 books are closed.

The Sheriff’s Office has 110 handguns, with about 80 of those being 17 years old, having been placed into service in 2007.

They are worn by deputies on a daily basis and used multiple times a year during live-fire training sessions. The manufacturer recommends parts and magazines be replaced after five years and the entire pistol after 10 years, Sheriff Christy Knowles said.

“Our pistols are well past the manufacture’s recommended service life,” she wrote in a memo.  “Continuous use of these outdated pistols is likely to lead to a firearms failure. If the failure occurs during a use of force encounter or deadly force situation it may result in the death or great bodily harm of a citizen or deputy.”

The pistols will include mounted flashlights, allowing a deputy to grip the pistol with two hands.

They also will be equipped with mounted red dot sights, which Knowles said are proven to increase accuracy.

“Ozaukee County has seen an increase in violent crime and criminal activity,” she said. “The Ozaukee County Sheriff’s Office needs to be properly equipped to perform their duties. The pistol is part of their standard duty equipment that is worn and used daily.”