In the small front room of the Marion Music Hall, with a fireplace at their back and the members sprawled over comfortable chairs and couches, the February 9 meeting of the Marion Energy Management Committee resembled more of a cozy fireside chat than a political meeting.
Rob Fisher gave more information on the LED street lighting project he is working on for Marion. He noted that he has no access to the electricity invoices from Eversource to the town.
“If I can get access to the street light costs from the invoices, I can figure out what Marion is paying,” he said. “We don’t know if the town is double-paying for street lights which may be paid for by local companies, or even Tabor.”
Committee member Eileen Marum added, “The energy committee has been active on this, and we still need answers.”
“We really want to help, and this could save the town a lot of money,” said Jennifer Francis. “Any double paying could be a significant portion of the town budget. It’s been two years.”
Energy Committee Chairman David Pierce summed up the problem.
“You know the situation, you know what you want, you need a little info and you can run with it,” Pierce said.
The committee then moved on to an exciting development: the lease of an electric car by the Town of Marion.
“We’ve received two grants from the state for $7,500 each,” explained Francis. “One covers the installation of a charging station and the other an electric car.”
Currently, municipal employees drive old police cars, which Francis referred to as “gas guzzlers.”
“This car will replace an old Crown Vic,” said Pierce cheerfully. A grant from the town government enabled the committee to hire a UMass Dartmouth employee who had helped the university gain electric cars. He instructed the committee in applying for the electric car grants available from the state.
“What we’re trying to do now,” said Francis, “is get the best bid from electric-car producing companies, so that Marion doesn’t need to draw any more money from the budget for an electric car.”
The electric car will be made available to municipal employees on a need-to-use basis. Norm Hills noted that the Recreation Department would likely have primary use, as the charging station will be located near its Mill Street headquarters.
Francis expressed her disappointment at losing a bid from Nissan for the Nissan Leaf, which she said was the best bid the town had.
“They weren’t comfortable with offering the bid if it wasn’t going to be a closed bidding process,” she explained.
Pierce agreed.
“I would be concerned, too, if I had to do that,” said Pierce. “Is there any reason that the process isn’t closed?”
Francis said she did not know why the bids can’t be completely closed.
“It’s unfortunate, because the grant would have covered the car entirely, without drawing any more money from the town,” said Francis.
“What would the lease fee per year be?” asked Pierce.
“Well, that depends on the winning bid,” said Francis. “But we’re trying to keep the costs down so that the grant will cover the entire cost of the car.”
The next meeting of the Marion Energy Management Committee has not yet been scheduled.
By Andrea Ray