In April 2004, the Town Meeting authorized the establishment of a Facilities Energy Management Project Committee to oversee an energy audit of certain facilities of the Town and to take any action to implement improvements to several Town owned facilities. The Moderator appointed the following members of the committee: Elizabeth Allison, Roger Colton, John Conte, Jennifer Fallon, James Fitzgerald, Franklin Hundley, Raffi Manjikian, Robert McLaughlin, Karen Pressey and Diane Stafford. Timothy McCarthy and Gerry Missal are the Management Liaisons to the Committee.
The first order of business for the committee was the election of officers as follows: Jennifer Fallon, Chair; James Fitzgerald, Vice-Chair; John Conte, Treasurer; Roger Colton, Secretary.
Through discussion with Town Counsel, the committee determined that we could legally assume responsibility for the Request for Proposals which had been issued under the authority of the Belmont Municipal Light Department, having been officially designated to oversee the project by the Light Board.
The committee met with consultants provided by the State Division of Energy Resources through the Rebuild America Program to understand the structure and benefits of energy services company (ESCo) agreements, how to evaluate the proposals before us, and what financing options are available for these agreements. We also received valuable help from Kevin Looney and Bob Martin in understanding the needs of the Town’s physical plant with regard to energy and water related infrastructure and what investments might give the Town the most benefit.
We investigated a possible collaboration with the Belmont Housing Authority to join an ESCo project to upgrade their facilities with the project we are overseeing for the Town’s facilities. It was determined that there would not be significant benefit to either party to link the projects, and we agreed to pursue our projects separately.
Following interviews with the two companies who had submitted proposals, the committee voted unanimously, with one member absent, to proceed with negotiating an agreement with Noresco. A Letter of Intent was signed with Noresco to proceed with the next phase of the project, the Detailed Energy Audit. A meeting was held with representatives of Noresco and representatives of the firms engaged to develop a Master Plan for the renovation of Belmont High School to exchange information and establish communication among the firms so that the projects will be appropriately coordinated.
The committee expects to receive the detailed audit early in 2005 and to proceed to negotiate a contract with Noresco for an ESCo project, with construction to begin in the spring and summer of 2005.
Respectfully submitted,
Jennifer M. Fallon, Chairman
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