Willington Public Library April 9, 2012
Community Room 6:30 P.M.
Attendees:
Board of Selectmen Energy Advisory Committee
First Selectman Mailhos Ed Taiman, Chairman
Selectman Littell Ralph Tulis
Selectman Blessington Norm Nadeau
Pam Wheeler (arrived at 6:46 PM)
Board of Education Scot Rogers (arrived at 6:55 PM)
Superintendent, David Harding
Barry Wallett
Mark Jones (arrived at 6:53 PM)
Leo Mercado (arrived at 7:52 AM)
Donna Latincsics, Business Manager
Andy Merola, CCM
First Selectman Mailhos called the meeting to order at 6:34 P.M.
- Discussion of Preliminary Energy Review Report with the Board of Education &
Energy Advisory Committee
Mr. Merola gave a presentation and brief overview of the Performance Contracting program and gave some examples of how their program works.
- There is no up front cost to contract
- The energy service company implements the Energy Conservation Measures (ECM)
- The ESCO is paid during construction from an escrow account funded by the lease
- The lender is paid over time from the energy savings resulting from the ECM
- The ESCO guarantees the product. If savings are not incurred, they will send the Town a check to pay the difference.
Ralph Tulis stated that the current energy budget would remain the same and the difference (from the savings) will go towards financing the upgrades. Mr. Merola added that there is also a guarantee behind the performance of the equipment upgrades; maintenance is also included during the life span of the contract.
Barry Wallett stated that in the example that is being presented, we would be paying on equipment for 20 years, how is that a good idea? We would be stuck with 20 year old equipment at that point. Mr. Merola stated that the Town will be presented with a list of upgrades that can be done. The Town will not have to put anything with a short term life in the contract if we do not wish to. He then clarified that it would not be a municipal lease, it would be a tax free loan and the Town can make administrative decisions throughout the lifespan of the loan. Also, he is using a 20 year loan as an example. We will not know the lifespan until a detailed audit is performed and work out a plan that works for both the contractor and the Town.
Chairman Taiman gave an example of the boiler at Hall School; it is near it’s end of life. If it dies, how are we going to pay to fix it? Using this program will be a way to replace the boiler with an energy efficient one without spending extra of the taxpayer’s money. Superintendent Harding stated that we (the Town) have done something similar to this with replacing the interior lights in the gym at Hall School as well as the lights in the parking lot, however, those things did not come with a guarantee or maintenance like this does.
Barry Wallett stated that it is alarming to him because it is a different financing method. It is a whole different authority structure than we have now. Chairman Taiman stated that the EAC has been looking at this thoroughly for the past two years. He has spoken with other Towns who are on this program. Everyone who he has spoken with have told him the same thing; the program allows the Towns to improve the facilities with more modern updated equipment (heating/cooling, etc.) and do it without raising taxes.
Superintendent Harding asked how competitive the rates are for financing? Mr. Merola stated that it will be competitively bid. He then presented the next step. CCM would perform a thorough visit in each of the Town owned buildings. The cost structure would be .7 cents per square foot. The total cost for the evaluation is $10,967 and includes Hall and Center School; Town Office Building, Library, Senior Center and Public Works. If the Town decides to move forward, a letter of intent is signed and the cost of the evaluation would be absorbed into the contract. If we decide not to, the Town would pay the $10,967 and we will receive a detailed audit report for each building.
Chairman Taiman stated that in October, 2010 the EAC met with Celtec Energy and ECG to discuss the performance contracting program. CCM’s program is different because there is no upfront cost. They have eliminated the layer of overhead; saving around $20,000 or $30,000 off the top.
Norm Nadeau asked after a building has been enveloped, does it qualify for any LEED ES rating? Mr. Merola stated it is benchmarked and if it scores 75 or above, it is rated as an energy star building.
Chairman Taiman stated how else would we be able to make improvements to the buildings without impacting the taxpayers and save energy as well. Barry Wallett stated that he is not being a skeptic; he is just weary because we have a lot of equipment that needs to be replaced. He thinks having an audit makes sense, but he is afraid of the extent of what will be financed; things that may have a shorter shelf life and it might not be energy efficient after 20 years. Chairman Taiman stated if we don’t end up saving what the company has projected, they will cut us a check. We would not get that type of guarantee by using the guy down the road.
Superintendent Harding suggested that it might be better to make the funding go through the capital projects and perhaps go through the CIP. First Selectman Mailhos asked Mr. Merola how other Towns do it. He stated that some Towns create a line item in the utility or energy budget as the lender program and build it into that line item. Some Towns sign two letters of intent; one from the Town and one from the Board of Education but the Town needs to be the authority for the financing.
Mr. Merola stated that CCM /Siemens will use as many incentives, rebates, federal grants and rebates as possible to drive the costs of the financing down. They will investigate to get the Town the best possible options. First Selectman Mailhos stated that we would need approval from the Board of Selectmen, and would also like to at least have a Public Hearing to get input from residents. She added that it will also need approval from the Board of Finance.
Selectman Blessington moved to schedule a Public Hearing for the first phase of this project on May 15, at 7:00 PM. The purpose of the meeting will be to present the idea of spending $10,967 on the detailed audits.
Selectman Littell seconded the motion.
Vote: 3 Yes (Mailhos, Littell & Blessington) 0 No.
Selectman Littell moved to adjourn the meeting at 7:59 P.M.
Selectman Blessington seconded the motion.
Vote: 3 Yes (Mailhos, Littell & Blessington) 0 No.
Respectfully submitted,
Robin Campbell
Robin Campbell
Administrative Assistant
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