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Council moves to monitor dance hall power use after SENSE units show spikes during events
Summary
Following SENSE power monitors that registered large spikes on event days, Fountain Green council agreed to have Rocky Mountain Power install a recording meter, consider LED retrofits and contract changes to bill rentals for hours/power used.
Fountain Green officials told the council on Dec. 30 that newly installed SENSE monitoring units have begun identifying high electricity spikes in the dance hall and theater during events, prompting a plan to gather utility-grade data and consider contract changes.
Facility staff said the SENSE units recorded a clear pattern: large, multi-hour spikes on event days — “those chandeliers in the dance hall… take a ton of power,” a facilities representative said — and repeated furnace and water-heater cycles in the theater. The council discussed revising rental contracts to allow the city to bill users if they occupy the space for more time than booked or if their event consumes substantially more electricity than expected.
Next steps agreed at the meeting include a Rocky Mountain Power team installing a recording (billing-grade) meter on the building for at least a week to collect corroborating data, and a month of local monitoring for comparative analysis. Staff will also inventory fixtures and estimate the cost and payback for LED retrofits; members noted Rocky Mountain Power sometimes offers incentives for efficiency upgrades.
Council members asked staff to update rental agreements so the city can invoice groups that exceed contracted hours. They also discussed thermostat strategies and smart controls to reduce baseline heating loads in infrequently used spaces.
Quotes and context "We were there at noon and they left at 8 p.m.; they were there for 16 hours, so they should have paid $400," a facilities speaker said, describing an event whose billed hours did not match observed use. Rocky Mountain Power will run the recording meter during a high-usage week to compare actual bills with monitored data.
What this means for renters: The city plans to give advance notice of any contract changes; staff will present proposed language allowing time-and/or-energy-based billing and will return to council with cost and implementation recommendations.
