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Deep River committee reviews municipal energy-planning tools, schedules HeatSmart session
Summary
At its Feb. 26 meeting, the Deep River Sustainability Committee reviewed the CEAC/PACE municipal energy-planning tool, agreed to establish a Portfolio Manager baseline, and assigned follow-ups including contacting Eversource, CT Green Bank MAP outreach and investigating ESCO options.
Deep River’s Sustainability Committee on Feb. 26 reviewed tools and next steps for a municipal energy plan after a presentation on the Connecticut Energy Advisory Committee (CEAC) online tool. Presenters demonstrated how CEAC, which leverages the PACE model and assessor data, can help towns select actions across building efficiency, electrification and clean energy and export a draft plan for local adaptation.
Committee members agreed the first practical step is establishing a baseline of municipal energy use. They recommended using EPA’s Energy Star Portfolio Manager for benchmarking municipal buildings and asked Carol to locate a prior Portfolio Manager account set up under former employee Jerry Richard. The committee also identified the Eversource liaison, Anna Tino, as a possible gateway to the Energized Connecticut program, which can provide engineering audits and recommendations.
Discussion highlighted a “Zero Over Time” strategy — aligning efficiency and clean-technology upgrades with the town’s existing capital-improvement schedule (roof, HVAC, parking) rather than attempting immediate, wholesale retrofits. Presenters cited the town of Brantford as an example and noted that Deep River’s recently approved Plan of Conservation and Development already contains sustainability language that supports such an approach.
Committee members emphasized that efficiency should precede electrification: installing a heat pump in a poorly insulated building wastes money, they said, so audits and weatherization should come before major electrification projects. The group also identified multifamily properties as an underserved segment and noted separate Eversource/utility programs targeted at 4+ unit buildings.
Operational and financing options were discussed. Committee members considered Energy Service Companies (ESCOs), such as Energia, which can finance and implement upgrades paid from energy savings, and contrasted ESCOs with municipal bonding for towns that prefer to retain more direct control. The CT Green Bank’s Municipal Assistance Program (MAP) was presented as another resource; the committee recorded a new contact, Jason Velasquez, to follow up on MAP services for solar evaluations and zero-money-down installations.
The committee agreed on several follow-up actions: locate the Portfolio Manager account, contact the Eversource liaison about Energized Connecticut, contact CT Green Bank MAP, crowd-source a streetlight inventory (Deep River currently receives roughly 14–20 separate Eversource streetlight bills with no clear map), review energy plans from comparable towns (Avon, Mansfield/Ashford cited as models), and investigate ESCO options. The HeatSmart information session was rescheduled for March 8 at 4:00 p.m. at the Chester Meeting House; members were encouraged to attend.
