Energy Committee Meeting - December 8, 2022
Meeting was called to order by Carl at 6:02 pm.
In attendance: Carl Bucholt, Tim Lalor, Carol Berry, Steven Henry, Joanne O’Connor, Leslie Perra (Interim Town Manager)
Absent: Jen Lalor, Jim Hand
Motion to approve minutes from 10/13/22 by Tim, moved by Carol. Approved by all.
Tim mentioned that not all meeting minutes have been added to the town’s website. Tim will email Carl with the ones missing so they can be added.
EV Charging Stations
Leslie gave an update on the project proposed for the parking lot behind Walgreens which includes adding four EV chargers. The overall cost is estimated to be close to $400K. The lot is owned in part by the town and the rest is owned by 4993 Main Street LLC, whose agent is Peter Keelan. An agreement has been reached between the town and Keelan to share part of the cost. In addition, businessman and developer Bill Drunsic has agreed to pay for a portion as well for the lot development. The remaining unfunded balance is approximately $124K. Leslie suggested it might come from the town’s ARPA funds. All of the funding should be committed within 1-2 months. The plan has been approved by the Development Review Board (DRB).
GMP is proposing to pay for and install the charging stations. All electric lines will be buried. No update on this part of the project.
Backup Generator
The Police, Fire and Rescue building needs a backup generator. Perhaps, ARPA money could pay for it. We discussed using a battery back-up vs. gas-powered generator, but the cost difference is very large.
Town Website
The Select board approved funds to hire a contractor to redesign the town website. Each town committee will have a link/tab to its own page. Leslie should know more in 2-3 weeks about the selected contractor and next steps.
VECAN Conference and Workshops:
Energy Committee Website
Steven will work with Leslie to rename and connect our page to the town site when the redesign gets underway. Carol and Steve are working together on adding energy-saving tips that people can incorporate into their daily lives to save on energy costs.
Window Dressers:
Volunteers built the windows around the custom-made frames from Oct 21-26 and have been installed for the winter. Many renters have their heat included in their rental costs. The program might appeal to landlords to lower their energy costs.
H518/Act 172 (ARPA Funds)
There is a comprehensive database of all available ARPA funding compiled by the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC). Rather than our energy committee trying to replicate the work already done by that commission, this database - with built-in filters - can be a useful tool for the town to match eligible projects with state agency funding. Steven will load the data into an Excel spreadsheet so it is available to the town to locate funding opportunities.
Still waiting for guidelines and applications from (the Vt Dept) BGS and subsequent notification from BCRC that the program is ready.
Earth Day Subcommittee
Earth Day, April 22, 2023, falls on a Saturday - a day that could attract a lot of interest and participation. An Earth Day subcommittee will be formed made up of members of the Northshire towns to plan an Earth Day regional event. Carl will contact chairs of Energy Committees from Northshire towns - Arlington, Dorset, Sunderland, Sandgate - to gauge their interest in this joint event and, if interested, ask for volunteers to help with planning.
Some suggestions: Riley Rink as a possible venue; include a fundraiser/raffle to win something electric (bike, car etc). SolarFest might be an interested participant. Funds raised to be donated to a local nonprofit.
Next meeting: in person, January 5, 2023 at 6pm in the Equinox Room at town hall.
Tim motioned to adjourn; Joanne seconded; all approved.
Meeting adjourned at 7:37pm.
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Approved by the Committee Date