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Commission allows contract negotiations with Energy Systems Group for county facilities assessment
Summary
Walsh County commissioners authorized staff to negotiate a project development agreement with Energy Systems Group to assess county building systems and identify energy‑savings projects using North Dakota’s guaranteed energy‑savings statute and cooperative procurement options.
Gavin Benson, a representative of Energy Systems Group, presented an overview of the firm’s approach to facility energy assessments and financing options and recommended a project development agreement to scope county building needs, prioritize capital work and identify financing, including North Dakota’s guaranteed energy savings statute.
Benson described the firm as a program manager for public‑sector energy projects and said it has worked on roughly $4.5 billion of projects nationwide. He outlined a process of facility assessments, prioritization and financing that can use the guaranteed energy savings statute (North Dakota Century Code §48‑05‑09 through §48‑05‑13) and cooperative procurement through Sourcewell. Benson said the statute lets jurisdictions use projected utility and operational savings to fund energy investments without raising taxes.
Commissioners discussed the county’s aging mechanical systems (including courthouse boilers and rooftop units), the jail project overlap and timing for prioritizing work. Benson said the firm typically wraps assessment costs into later construction financing if the county proceeds to a project; if the county does not proceed, the firm’s development fee is typically billed as an assessment cost. He gave a planning estimate for the development/assessment phase of roughly $0.10–$0.15 per square foot (a rough range equating to about $10,000–$20,000 for typical county building footprints) and noted grant and federal funding windows that can affect timing.
Commissioner discussion focused on timing (to avoid duplicating a planned jail HVAC replacement) and procurement advantages offered by Sourcewell. Commissioners asked staff to authorize negotiation of a project development agreement rather than approve final construction. The commission then voted to authorize staff to negotiate and develop the agreement and to return with the contract for final review.
Motion and vote: A motion to proceed with negotiation of a project development agreement for facility assessments and project development was made, seconded and approved on a roll call; commissioners voted in favor, with the clerk recording unanimous yes votes during the roll call.
Ending: Staff will receive a draft project development agreement and return the proposed agreement to the commission for approval before construction procurement.
