Solar Power Project at Village Lagoon Scaled Back

Last fall, the Okawville Village Board approved a plan to build a solar array that would supply all of the power needs to the lagoon, which is the village’s largest power draw. When Ameren inspected the proposed system, it was found to be inadequate to the task as originally envisioned.

“I’m not an electrician, but Ameren says that they can’t put in a system as large as we had planned because the lagoon does not have full three-phase power,” said Drew Hesker, chairman of the Village Board Finance Committee.

“This isn’t a deal-breaker, but it’s still frustrating,” Hesker said. “It still makes sense for the village to do the project, even with it only covering two-thirds of the lagoon’s power needs, because it will save the taxpayers money.”

Read the full article in this week’s issue.