Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-06-20 RMLD Citizens Advisory Board Minutes ' rq Town of Reading = Meeting Minutes I Board - Committee - Commission - Council: RMLD Citizens Advisory Board 2011 GCi 18 AM 9: 21 Date: 2018-06-20 Time: 6:30 PM Building: Reading Municipal Light Building Location: Winfred Spurr Audio Visual Room Address: 230 Ash Street Session: Open Session Purpose: General Business Version: Final Attendees: Members - Present: Mr. George Hooper, Chair (Wilmington); Mr. Jason Small, Vice Chair (North Reading); Mr. Neil Cohen (Reading); Mr. Vivek Soni (Lynnfield) Members - Not Present: Mr. Dennis Kelley, Secretary (Wilmington) Others Present: Mr. Phil Pacino, Board of Commissioners Ms. Coleen O'Brien, General Manager; Ms. Joyce Mulvaney, M Jane Parenteau, Ms. Kathleen Rybak, Mr. Ben Thivierge Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Mr. George Hooper, Chair Topics of Discussion: 1. Call Meeting to Order - G. Hooper, Chair Chair Hooper called the meeting of the Citizens' Advisory Board to order at 6:30 PM and noted that the meeting was being audio recorded. 2. Approval of Minutes - G. Hooper, Chair Materials: Draft Minutes from April 11,2018,and April 18,2018. Mr. Cohen made a motion to approve the minutes of the April 11, 2018, meeting as written, seconded by Mr. Vivek. Hearing no further discussion, motion carried 4:0:1 (4 in favor, 0 opposed, 1 absent). Mr. Cohen made a motion to approve the minutes of the April 18, 2018, meeting as written, seconded by Mr. Small. Hearing no further discussion, motion carried 3:0:1:1 (3 in favor, 0 opposed, 1 abstained, 1 absent). 3. New OSHA Requirements - C. O'Brien, General Manager Ms. O'Brien reported that effective February 2019 all State and municipal workers will need to comply with OSHA requirements. RMLD staff has attended some training classes regarding the requirements, and a consultant has been hired through NEPPA to do an all-staff training in June as well as a three-day self audit at the end of the Lsummer. Ms. O'Brien stated that she believes, overall, RMLD is in good shape other than some logistics or procedural issues, i.e., staff acknowledgement of procedures, and contractor oversite. Page 1 1 Mr. Small noted that the State is offering webinars on the new requirement; the State is adopting the OSHA requirements, and the Department of Standards will be enforcing it. The State is also offering free audits and will work with you if they find you are not in compliance. They will give a time frame for compliance; if you don't meet the time frame, you could be fined. 4. Electric Vehicle Pilot Program - B. Thivierge, Resource Specialist, IRD Materials: "Electrify Your Ride" presentation slides Mr. Thivierge provided a basic overview of electric vehicles (EV) and their potential revenue generating benefit for RMLD. As of June 15t (and running through October) RMLD is offering a pilot rebate program for residential customers. The program offers customer rebates of$1,000 - $1,500 depending on the type of electric vehicle purchased or leased. The residential EV charging station rebate program has also been updated to cover 100% of the cost of equipment up to $500 for Level II networked or "smart" charging stations. The target is six rebates per month; the June target has already been met. RMLD, working with Mass Energy Alliance and local car dealerships, will also do marketing and educational campaigns on the benefits of electrical vehicles and the available tax and rebate incentives. Mr. Cohen asked about the financial benefit to RMLD. RMLD is foregoing any benefit for a period of 3-5 years. Is that a correct interpretation of the numbers? Ms. Parenteau responded that it was. Based on current State data, there are 70-90 electric vehicles that have been purchased within the RMLD service territory. We want to educate consumers about the benefits of electric vehicles in order to capitalize on that potential increase in revenue. Ms. O'Brien added that RMLD, by State mandate, must put aside one quarter of 1% for conservation initiatives (public education and/or rebates). Funds for this rebate program will be paid from the conservation fund. RMLD has provided rebates for solar installations, but with a negative payback. This program uses the same money toward a program with potential payback in three years (through increased revenue). 5. Redesigned RMLD Website - J. Mulvaney, Communications Manager Ms. Mulvaney presented a "tour" of the new RMLD website, which was launched on June I't. The goals of the redesign was a more business-like theme and a mobile-friendly site that is easier to use with a phone or other mobile device. 6. Next Meeting - G. Hooper, Chair The next meet of the Citizens' Advisory Board will be held on July 18, 2018. 7. Adjournment - G. Hooper, Chair Mr. Cohen made a motion to adjourn the Citizens'Advisory Board meeting, seconded by Mr. Small. Hearing no further discussion motion carried 4:0:1 (4 in favor, 0 opposed, 1 absent). Meeting adjourned at 7:25 PM As approved September 19, 2018. Page 13 N 00 a C O c� - � o v =o W O v Q co u 3 o y m 0 a ui O u C N v a v W y a -� r- O o W Ic a > m ° o V _ d N o Fu V Wu 6 0 J A N L O ui _ ° U IL o Zd w a V s O N t c _ Lj o V V 2 V 2 0 N } Q LU w N a N J r d o Cie 0-j o 0 -lo - V. - - 2 \ _ ; § ? ■ w 00 40J [ _ .c w 0 § / © r4 �§ 2 \ Ln b k C o ' - : A E k k w k \ - m 4J< < « � � � 2 . M § � � /x 0 ' � & < o ' w (A2 ■ f - ` O & 0 ° m lip � ■ a § � & / § * - e e © 7 } \ $ m & ( \ > \ / / / � \ \ : Cie \ 7 \ ƒ ƒ } } ± ° § y .