CMLP updates: two staff departures, AMI nearly complete, Hanscom charger live and Seabrook contract discussion on board radar

The Concord Municipal Light Plant (CMLP) director and operations staff gave a multipart update covering personnel changes, electric vehicle adoption, progress on local solar projects, meter upgrades and infrastructure work.

Personnel and EV adoption Director Jason said two employees will leave the utility in the coming week: Pat Solly, a line and underground crew member who had worked nearly six years, and Victor Sensian, a senior network engineer who had worked on large projects "off and on since 2021." (Jason)

Jason also noted that electric vehicles now account for more than 10% of all registered vehicles in Concord and that "over 50 new EVs were registered in the second half of 2024," a sign of accelerating local adoption. (Jason)

Middle school solar and RFP status Jason said the new middle school building will be ready for occupancy in coming weeks and staff have met with Assistant Superintendent Bob Connelly (as named in the transcript) on a proposed site license. He said councils from both parties are advising on final language and the utility hopes to present a finalized site license and issue an RFP soon: "we are very close to this. And, hopefully, at our next meeting, we'll have some good news on the status of the RFP." (Jason)

Advanced metering (AMI) deployment and customer service Customer service manager Carol Hilton and metering supervisor Anne Breitmacher introduced the customer service and metering teams to the board and described AMI deployment progress. Jason earlier said there were "just around a hundred meters left to deploy," but Anne reported a more specific count later: "We only have 41 meters left," and she summarized the deployment history and different metering technologies the utility has used over the decades. Staff also described handling of anomalous meter readings: meters with "wacky" readings were identified by staff during reads, swapped out, and the billing adjustment approach is to average the same month over the last three years to estimate a correct bill while the meter is investigated. (Anne)

Field projects and equipment Jason thanked line and engineering crews for tree‑trimming work; Marquee Tree was the low bidder and is working to complete about 50% of the town before February but will pause operations if they would interfere with winter operations. He reported level‑3 chargers at the Rideout location had been damaged; replacement parts were shipped and installation is pending. He also said the utility supported commissioning a new high‑voltage charger at Hanscom for electric aircraft and that the unit "is live now." (Jason)

Seabrook nuclear contract notice Jason told the board he had been offered a "blend and extend" on the utility's Seabrook nuclear contract that could extend the contract for up to 10 years. He described the general economics: a short‑term price increase in the early years in exchange for lower long‑term average costs. He did not request action at the meeting but put the opportunity on the board's radar and said staff may bring it back for discussion or executive session if contract review is needed.

Votes recorded The board approved the minutes from the Jan. 22, 2025 meeting by motion (mover: Brian; second: John) and later unanimously voted to adjourn. The board did not take formal votes on the Seabrook proposal or on solar billing at this meeting; it provided direction to staff on the solar‑credit approach. (Motion details below.)

Ending Board members thanked staff for the AMI deployment and customer‑facing work and asked staff to return with RFP status on the middle‑school solar project and more details before any action on the Seabrook blend‑and‑extend option.