Grove City Messenger - August 9th, 2020

PAGE 4 - GROVE CITY MESSENGER - August 9, 2020
Community Focus
www.columbusmessenger.com
Voters to see energy aggregation on the ballot
By Andrea Cordle
Grove City Editor
Many communities are on board with an energy aggregation.
Grove City wants to join the ranks.
At the Aug. 3 meeting, Grove City Council voted to submit
an opt-out electric service aggregation program to the
November ballot.
“This puts an initiative on the ballot that would give
residents the option to have energy sourced by wind and
solar,” said councilman Ted Berry. “We are trying to get
away from coal and other heavy pollutants.”
According to AEP Energy, a community choice aggregation
allows local governments to use its buying power on
behalf of the residents and small businesses to purchase
energy with the goal of obtaining better rates, more unique
products (local wind and solar power) and favorable contract
terms. If voters approve the measure, the city will
reach a purchasing agreement with a supply company and
each eligible household or business would be notified of the
offer and decide whether to participate.
Chris Bailey, the director of community partnerships
with AEP Energy, said the company is pulling a portfolio
of wind and solar outlets in Ohio.
“If you combine wind and solar, it works well together,”
said Bailey.
He believes the most cost-effective way to achieve reliable
supply is by developing wind and solar projects
in the state, which the company has already started.
The sustainability committee in Grove City has
been working on this plan for a year.
Cathy Cowan Becker, a member of the committee,
said, “This is an opportunity to build the world
we want.”
She said there is widespread support for renewable
energy, and she believes this aggregation is
one step in the right direction to address climate
change.
The city of Columbus will have an initiative on
its ballot allowing voters to decide on aggregation.
SWCS
Continued from page 1
percent remote learning format. That announcement
came just two weeks after officials unveiled a reopening
draft plan that included some in-person instruction.
What prompted the abandonment of the initial
reopening draft plan, said Superintendent Dr. Bill
Wise, was up-to-date information shared by state and
local health departments regarding COVID-19 positivity
rates, case counts and trend lines.
“It was their recommendation that, based on these
factors, it was not conducive to reopen schools in a
hybrid or blended format at this time,” he said.
Wise added that while it was difficult to hear that
news and then relay it back to the community, it was
not difficult to follow their recommendation.
“I want to see students and staff back in the building
as much as anyone because I do feel that face-toface
instruction is the most superior learning model,”
he said. “But at the same time, we have to do what is
best to keep our students, our staff and our community
safe.”
South-Western was just one of a host of districts
that announced a switch to a 100 percent remote
learning format that week. Unlike a number of them,
however, the district did not commit to a remote learning
timeline.
“As of right now, we do not have a timeline for when
we will stay in the 100 percent remote learning
model,” Wise said. “Data may change that will make it
possible for us to start implementing that blended
learning format sooner rather than later.
“But all of that depends on the most recent information
and recommendations from our health professionals
and the commitment by the community to follow
their advice by continuing to wear facial coverings,
practice good hygiene and hand washing, maintaining
The city’s goal is to use 100 percent renewable energy and
have much of it in place by 2022. Columbus will be conducting
its own voter education campaign on aggregation.
Grove City could benefit from this.
“Grove City has a unique opportunity to piggyback off of
Columbus,” said Cowan Becker.
Much of the information presented to Columbus residents
would filter to residents of Grove City.
Though this program would cover many residents and
businesses in Grove City, not all would be eligible to participate.
According to AEP Energy, only residents and small
businesses that use less than 700,000 kilowatts per hour
are eligible to participate. Households that have existing
third-party agreements or that are on percentage of
income payment plans are not eligible for the program.
For Grove City, about two thirds of the community
would be eligible for the community choice aggregation.
AEP Energy reports that aggregation programs can
save residents and small business owners money on their
energy bills. Exactly how much is yet to be determined.
According to the company, Grove City could save about 3.5
percent, which amounts to approximately $188,000 per
year.
For more information on community choice aggregation,
visit www.aepenergy.com.
six feet of physical distance from others and staying
home as much as possible.”
The news of the adjustment to a 100 percent remote
learning model was met with a mixed reaction online.
While a majority of those commenting on social media
seemed to be appreciative of the change, some
expressed displeasure with the remote learning format.
Wise said he is aware of the issues with its implementation
last March but is confident the remote
learning format will work better for students this
upcoming school year.
“It is not going to be like it was in the spring,” he
said.
Sandra Nekoloff, the district’s director of communications,
said in an email that in order to better the
experience, they were “working with our teachers
association in hopes that we can include more synchronous
activities,” coordinating “the regularity of staff
contact times”, and refining “the format of the learning
information system…to provide an improved learning
experience for our students.”
If and when the district allows in-person instruction,
it will be conducted in a way to reduce the
amount of students within a building. According to the
blended learning model plans unveiled on July 13, an
algorithm used by the Infinite Campus will split the
student bodies at each school into two separate groups.
One group of students will attend in-person on two
consecutive days, while the other group will attend on
consecutive days later that week. Each group will
learn remotely for three days while not receiving inperson
instruction. On the day in between the in-person
instruction groups, the buildings will receive a
deep cleaning.