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Weare Energy Commission: contract signed for safety-complex solar; training set for week of July 27
Summary
At its July 15 meeting, the Weare Energy Commission reported it signed a contract with Barrington Solar for panels at the public safety complex and filed an Eversource permit application; required training for staff and contractors is scheduled the week of July 27. The commission could not take formal action because the agenda was posted late.
The Weare Energy Commission reported on July 15 that the town has signed a contract with Barrington Solar to install rooftop solar at the public safety complex and has filed the Eversource permit application needed for interconnection.
"The contract was signed, thank goodness," Chair David Erickson said, adding the project is expected to reduce the town's electricity bills by roughly $8,000 a year. Chris Conroy, the commission's vice chair, said the town has also "filled out and filed the Eversource permit application for solar" and that training with Barrington Solar and state officials will take place the week of July 27 to cover installation and reporting requirements.
Erickson and other commissioners emphasized that the interconnection approval is a necessary next step and can take time because projects are processed in a queue. Commissioners discussed volunteering to attend the July training so the town can certify compliance paperwork and reporting requirements tied to federal funding rules, including references during the meeting to the Davis-Bacon Act wage requirements.
The commission also discussed municipal energy-supply options. Erickson said Town Administrator Naomi Bolton is reviewing Kearsarge Energy as a possible supplier; he noted some aggregators structure payments to public entities and mentioned an example figure raised in the discussion of about 10% of profits being allocated to public entities. Commissioners agreed they could discuss aggregator options with outside presenters but, because the agenda was not posted on time, they could not make any formal motions or choose a vendor at the meeting.
Next steps: the town will complete the Eversource interconnection process, circulate details of the July 27 training to commissioners, and report back to the commission as permitting and training progress. Because the agenda was not posted on time, no formal votes or motions were taken at the July 15 meeting.
