HomeMy WebLinkAboutLight Comm. 11/20/2024Mansfield Municipal Electric Department
Minutes of Light Commissioners Meeting
November 201^, 2024
Present: Chair Brendan Roache, Vice Chair Walter Wilk, Clerk Maureen Doherty, Commissioner Diana Bren,
Commissioner Michael Trowbridge, Light Department Manager Joseph Sollecito
1) Open Meeting — Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance. The meeting was held at the Mansfield Town Hall Room
3AB and called to order at 6:00 PM followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.
A complete copy of the Board packet containing all documents that are referenced in the minutes is on file at the
Mansfield Municipal Electric Department office.
2) General Managers Report
a) Review of L. Anderson memo and consideration to approve adjustment to the Connected Homes rebate
incentive program for 2025 regarding 'Nest' Thermostats.
Manager Sollecito explained that the Google Nest thermostats do not report to our vendor which
thermostats are contributing to the connected home program peak reductions. On average, about 60-65%of the
google nest customers that are in the program are not participating in peak events. Therefore, the monthly rebate
incentive is not reflecting the participation. Manager Sollecito stated that there are three options to choose from. The
first option is to keep everything the same. Option two is to have a pro rating for the value. Lastly the third option is to
eliminate google nest thermostats altogether from the program. Manager Sollecito recommended option two.
Commissioner Trowbridge recommends the fair way to do it is to go with option two. Commissioner Bren agrees with
that assessment. Manager Sollecito recommends that this goes into effect after Jan 151, 2025.
Motion: To approve option number two to pro -rate the rebate levels based for Google Nest thermostats
based upon overall participation in peak reduction (Doherty, Trowbridge) 5/0
b) Review of Manager Sollecito memo and consideration to approve adding rebate for ground -source heat pumps
to 2025 rebate program.
Manager Sollecito reviewed the consideration for providing a rebate for ground source heat pumps and also
how they work to heat or cool homes. Such a system is a very expensive to install. There are rebates for those with
natural gas through the Mass Save program. Municipal light plants who do provide rebates for ground -source heat
pumps typically give $500/ton with a maximum rebate of $2500 per residential property. Commissioner Bren asked
what the cost could be to have one installed. It is around $20,000-$30,000. Commissioner Trowbridge wants to know
what would be a reasonable cap to put on the rebate program and Manager Sollecito recommended $500/ton no
more the $2,500 per customer per year with a maximum budget of $20,000 a year.
Motion: To add the rebate for the ground -source heat pumps to the rebate program effective Jan 1, 2024
to be capped at $500/ton with a max 5 tons per resident with an annual budget of $20,000 per year. (Doherty/
Trowbridge) 5/0
4) Citizens Questions and Comments
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5) Commissioners Questions & Comments
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6) Any items not anticipated by the Chair 48 hours prior to this meeting
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7) Motion to Adjourn at 6:15pm
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(Doherty/Trowbridge) passes 5/0
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Respectfully submitted: Toni -Ann D'Ambra
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Signature of Clerk bate of Approval