Switch to Gas to Fuel Savings for Monroe Elementary School

Interim Supt. of Schools John Goetz recently told the Board of Education that switching Monroe Elementary School from oil to natural gas could save the district about $40,000 in the first year.

Yankee Gas Co. agreed to do the conversion and the school system will only have to pay the minimal cost of repaving a section of the parking lot of the Monroe Turnpike school, according to Goetz, who estimates that a repaving could cost $10,000.

"It makes sense," Goetz said. "There's savings." He added that oil is a volatile market when it comes to fluctuating prices.

Mark Hughes, the school board secretary, motioned to approve the conversion at the board's last meeting, and it passed unanimously.

Goetz said Monroe Elementary Schools pays between $100,000 and $105,000 a year for heating the building and that once the school is converted to gas there would be an estimated $50,000 to $60,000 in annual savings after the first year.

Some board members wondered why the district is not considering converting all of its schools to natural gas.

"Not all schools have heating systems that are easy to convert to natural gas," Assistant Supt. of Schools John Battista said. "Other schools have to spend more money to convert."

For example, he said Stepney Elementary School doesn't have gas lines.

The district has entered a four-year agreement with Yankee Gas. Prior to the Board of Education's vote, board member Donna Lane asked if there were any controls preventing the company from "jacking up" its price in the fifth year.

"You're always at the mercy of energy providers," Goetz replied. "I don't think there is any guarantee."

However, he said the industry believes gas is cheaper than the volatile oil market.

"If they doubled the price, we could switch back," Board of Education Chairman Darrell Trump said.

Gabriella DiBlasi, finance director for Monroe Public Schools, was asked if switching to gas for one elementary school would affect the oil consortium Monroe participates in where a district locks in a price. DiBlasi said the district will just order less.