After Tax Dispute Resolved, Town’s Substation Sold to Eversource for $45M

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Photo: The 60-megawatt Blair Pond substation off Brighton Street.

After being delayed for several days to resolve a last-minute tax dispute, the most expensive transaction in the Town of Belmont’s history was approved Dec. 15 when the Light Board OK’d the sale of the newly-constructed Belmont Light’s 60-megawatt Blair Pond substation off Brighton Street and three new 115kV transmission lines to utility giant Eversource for $45 million.

The push back of the agreement’s closing date was due to an objection initiated by Selectman Sami Baghdady – the Board of Selectmen makes up the Light Board – who questioned Eversource’s assumption it was exempt from paying local taxes on contractual services which would reduce its tax burden to the town by nearly 90 percent.

In the end, the town’s contention made by Town Assessors’ Chair Robert Reardon that Eversource would be required to pay the full tax won the day as the utility will send an estimated $350,000 in annual taxes to the town.

The $45 million for the new cables and the 10,000 square-foot electrical substation off Brighton Street on Flanders Road on the Cambridge line will be used to pay off the $26 million in short-term loans used to construct the project.

The town’s new system that is connected to New England Electric Grid at Alewife will provide “an effective energy distribution solution for Belmont residents and businesses for the next forty years,” stated a press release from Belmont Light

In February 2012, Belmont Town Meeting voted unanimously to authorize $53.7 million in new bonding capacity to finance the new system which doubled electrical capacity increasing reliability for Belmont customers.

In its Joint Development Agreement, Eversource reimburses Belmont $45 million for the cost of constructing the transmission line and for the utility to take permanent ownership and maintenance responsibilities for the transmission line moving forward.

With the transfer of ownership, Belmont’s construction costs for the Blair Pond Substation and Transmission Line project, anticipated to be $53.7 million, closed out at $26.1 million, a $27.6 million savings for Belmont ratepayers.

A corresponding rate increase associated with the cost of this project that was initially anticipated to be approximately 14 percent for Belmont Light customers is instead 6 percent, an increase that has already been factored into rates, according to Belmont Light calculations.

“At the end of the day, in working with Eversource, we [can] deliver a critical project for Belmont electric users that addresses our serious capacity concerns, skyrocketing maintenance costs and power quality issues, in the most modernized and efficient manner,” said Belmont Light General Manager Jim Palmer in the press release.

“Just as important, due to our agreement with Eversource, we are able to do so substantially under the original cost estimates approved by Town Meeting and save the Belmont ratepayers $27.6 million while providing the best possible solution for our future needs.”

Celebrate the Winter Solstice With Belmont Light, Thursday 3PM-7PM

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Photo: Poster announcing this year’s Winter Solstice celebration

Belmont Light will be celebrating the Winter Solstice with its customers at the 40 Prince St. office on Thursday, Dec. 15.

The event will be held from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. and is open to all Belmont Light customers. Attendees are encouraged to bring a new or very gently used blanket, bedspread, comforter, or quilt with them to the event to help share the warmth with others in need.

Customers will have an opportunity to share a mug of hot cider or hot chocolate and say hello to special guest, Frosty the Snowman.

Belmont Light customers will be able to pick up a free CFL light bulb and an LED nightlight.

“Celebrating the Winter Solstice is always a fun event for the community and we encourage our customers to stop by our 40 Prince Street office to celebrate the beginning of the winter season,” Belmont Light General Manager Jim Palmer said.

“At the same time, it’s a great way to help others in need by donating bedding to Mission of Deeds.” 

For more information about Celebrating the Winter Solstice, please visit the Belmont Light website or call 617-993-2800.

$45M Substation Sale In A Bind As Town Assess Eversource’s Tax Motives

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Photo: The new electrical substation, not yet Eversources

The largest financial transaction in the Town of Belmont’s history is on tenterhooks as a last-minute dispute over a powerful regional utility’s attempt to limit its exposure to municipal taxes has town officials demanding changes to the already signed sales agreement.

With only four days left to complete the deal, the Belmont Light Board (made up of the Board of Selectmen) and the chair of the town’s Board of Assessors are seeking changes to or the elimination of a single paragraph in the sale of the town’s new substation and two land easements which would nearly zero-out the firm’s exposure to paying non-property taxes by binding Belmont to the utilities’ interpretation of those costs.

“We are at an impasse,” said Light Board Chair Mark Paolillo at the Board’s Monday afternoon meeting at Town Hall, Dec. 12.

“We as the town fathers would be failing to do our job to approve this agreement as it is right now,” said board member Sami Baghdady.

What’s not in dispute is the $45 million Eversource will pay Belmont for the newly-constructed 10,000 square-foot electrical substations off Brighton Street on Flanders Road on the Cambridge line and new 115 kV transmission lines using easements along the MBTA Commuter Rail tracks and on town property. The new substation was approved by a unanimous vote of Special Town Meeting in Feb. 2012.

Formerly known as Northeast Utilities, the Hartford- and Boston-based Eversource is a regional electrical and gas utility with more than 3.6 million customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. It merged with NSTAR in 2012.

Belmont Town Treasurer Floyd Carman said the payment, which last week he called the largest financial transaction the town has committed to, will be used to pay off $28 million in short-term bonds which financed the construction.

Carman said the remaining $17 million would be set aside to pay the cost of decommissioning Belmont Light’s three former substations located at the Chenery Middle School, off Hittinger Street and at the old Light Department Headquarters adjacent the Police Station on Concord Avenue and other improvements.

Under a joint development agreement, Belmont’s electrical utility Belmont Light and Eversource agreed to close the deal and transfer the assets two weeks after final testings concluded which occurred on Dec. 2. The Light Board – which is the governing body of Belmont Light – and Eversource then worked to reach an agreement before Dec. 16.

It was during the reading of the purchase and sale agreement that Baghdady, a transactional attorney, spotted a line in the document concerning the assessment of non-property personal services, which is the value of the contractional work on the project.

“I could tell that [Eversource] appeared to be attempting to minimize their taxes to the town,” said Baghdady.

While the Light Board signed the sales agreement at an Emergency Meeting on Friday, Dec. 9, it did so with the caveat that more information on the fallout of Eversource’s motive to add the language to the deal. The board then asked the town’s Board of Assessors’ Chair Robert Reardon to lend his expertise to the matter.

Reardon, whose day job is the director of the Cambridge Assessing Department, concluded the current language would bind Belmont’s assessors to that went against its best interest and ran counter to state assessing law which allows municipalities to not just tax real property but the value of the personal services, in Belmont’s case when engineers installed the transformers, switchgear, and protective equipment.

In Reardon’s opinion under the existing agreement, Eversource could point to the sales document to prevent Belmont’s assessors from taxing the services rendered.

In his view, the annual assessed payment from the utility to the town would be reduced from approximately $350,000 to $3,500, saving the utility $346,500 annually to Belmont’s deficit.

“I trying to protect the town,” said Reardon as he declared his opposition to the deal.

Belmont Light’s counsel Walter Foskett said Eversource could be reluctant to make changes to a signed sales document, but Paolillo noted that Eversourse “showed their hand” on including and defending the particular paragraph to the agreement.

“Why care about the language if you are not going to use it … for a tax break,” he said.

In the view of Reardon and the Light Board, taking out the disputed language doesn’t prevent Eversource from appealing the judgment of Belmont’s assessors to the appellate court.

“This is important enough to meet again,” said Paolillo.

Shockingly Fun: Test Drive Electric Cars Saturday at the High School

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Photo: The choice of electric cars have exploded in the past five years.

Take a – quiet – test drive in an electric vehicle on Saturday, Oct. 15 and “experience the speed and power of these vehicles first hand” as the local electric utility partners up with Belmont energy and conservation groups to promote driving “plugged in.”

screen-shot-2016-10-14-at-2-28-56-pm

Sponsored by Belmont Light, in partnership with Sustainable Belmont, Belmont Energy Committee and residents, Belmont Drives Electric is a local initiative designed to highlight the benefits of driving electric vehicles and connect Belmont residents to rebates, incentives, and free test drives.

The test drive takes place from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Belmont High School off Concord Avenue in the large parking lot. 

According to the groups, plug-in electric vehicles are affordable, efficient and fun to drive! Fueling your car on electricity compared to gasoline is much cheaper and you will see additional savings from lower maintenance costs.  Plug-in electric vehicles offer a significant reduction in carbon emissions compared to gasoline vehicles.  Take a free test drive and experience the speed and power of these vehicles first hand!

Belmont Light Asks To Ease Up On Electrical Use During Heat Wave

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Photo: Sunny hot days ahead.

Belmont Light and its partner, Woburn-based energy efficiency firm Sagewell, are informing customers that today, Thursday, Aug. 11, and Friday, Aug. 12, are expected to be high electricity use days due to continued high temperatures across New England. 

And the town’s electrical utility is asking residents and customers to help it save energy and money by reducing electricity consumption between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.

Because Belmont Light is municipally-owned, all savings are passed onto ratepayers. 

Belmont Light is asking consumers to employ at least two of six actions to reduce the town’s peak electricity consumption including:

  1. Adjust the air conditioner a few degrees warmer and turn off the AC in rooms that are not in use. Adjusting the thermostat by two or three degrees makes a big difference.
  2. Don’t cook with an electric stove or oven.
  3. Shift laundry and dishwasher use until after 6 p.m.
  4. If you have an electric hot water heater, wait to bathe or use hot water until after 6 p.m.
  5. Run pool pumps or use hot tubs before 2 p.m. or after 6 p.m.
  6. Shift other electricity use to before 2 p.m. or after 6 p.m.

Every bit of electricity reduced during peak times will help Belmont mitigate rising electricity costs. If you have any questions or would like advice on how to decrease peak energy consumption, contact Sagewell’s Belmont Light Peak Reduction Program at:
support@sagewell.com or 617-963-8141.

Belmont Light Asks Residents/Consumers To Limit Power Usage Thru Tuesday

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Photo: Sunny hot days ahead.

Belmont Light and its partner, Woburn-based energy efficiency firm Sagewell, are informing customers that Monday, July 25 and Tuesday, July 26, are expected to be high electricity use days due to continued high temperatures across New England. 

And the town’s electrical utility is asking residents and customers to help it save energy and money by reducing electricity consumption on Monday and Tuesday between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.

Because Belmont Light is municipally-owned, all savings are passed onto ratepayers. 

Belmont Light is asking consumers to employ at least two actions to reduce the town’s peak electricity consumption including:

  • Adjust the air conditioner a few degrees warmer and turn off the AC in rooms that are not in use. Adjusting the thermostat by two or three degrees makes a big difference.
  • Don’t cook with an electric stove or oven.
  • Shift laundry and dishwasher use until after 6 p.m.
  • If you have an electric hot water heater, wait to bathe or use hot water until after 6 p.m.
  • Run pool pumps or use hot tubs before 2 p.m. or after 6 p.m.
  • Shift other electricity use to before 2 p.m. or after 6 p.m.

Every bit of electricity reduced during peak times will help Belmont mitigate rising electricity costs. If you have any questions or would like advice on how to decrease peak energy consumption, contact Sagewell’s Belmont Light Peak Reduction Program at:
support@sagewell.com or
617-963-8141.

With Temps In The 90s, Belmont Light Asks Consumers to Save By Using Less

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Photo: It is going to be a scorcher.

With the high-temperature in New England today, Monday, July 18, expected to hit the low to mid-90 degrees, electrical utilities across the region – including Belmont’s Light Department – are anticipating a high electricity use day, putting a strain on the power grid.

To save energy and money by reducing electricity consumption, Belmont Light and the Woburn-based energy efficiency firm Sagewell are asking customers to turn down their electrical consumption today between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.

The utility and its partner are asking Belmont residents and businesses to take at least two steps listed below to reduce their peak electricity consumption:

  • Adjust your AC a few degrees warmer and turn off the AC in rooms that are not in use. Changing the thermostat by two or three degrees makes a big difference.
  • Enjoy the sunny weather and cook outside on a grill, or visit a local Belmont restaurant for dinner
  • Don’t cook with an electric stove or oven.
  • Shift laundry and dishwasher use until after 6 p.m.
  • If you have an electric water heater, wait to bathe or use hot water until after 6 p.m.
  • Run pool pumps or use hot tubs before three p.m. or after 6 p.m.
  • Shift other electricity uses to before 3 p.m. or after 6 p.m.

“Every bit of electricity reduced during peak times will help Belmont mitigate rising electricity costs,” said a joint press release dated Sunday, July 17.

Because Belmont Light is town-owned, any savings from this program are passed onto ratepayers,” it read.

Any questions or advice on how to decrease peak energy consumption, contact Sagewell’s Belmont Light Peak Reduction Program at:
support@sagewell.com or
617-963-8141

Belmont Light Offering Rebates For New Energy Efficient Appliances

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Photo: The Energy Star program. 

Thinking about purchasing a new appliance for your home this year? If so, get paid for making a smart energy choice through Belmont Light’s 2016 ENERGY STAR® Appliance Rebate Program. The program offers rebates of up to $200 annually per residential account for certain ENERGY STAR-labeled products. 

“Appliances like refrigerators and air conditions account for a noticeable portion of our customers’ monthly usage,” said Becca Kean, Belmont Light Energy Resources Analyst. “Upgrading old appliances is one of the most sure-fire ways to reduce your electricity bills,” she said. 

Older models, and even newer products that haven’t earned an energy-savings label, can add hundreds of dollars a year to your costs compared to ENERGY STAR equipment. For example, a refrigerator produced circa 1990 can use upwards of triple the amount of electricity needed to run modern, ENERGY-STAR models. 

While the upfront costs of newer, highly efficient appliances are generally recouped after a few years of electricity bills, Belmont Light’s appliance rebate program aims to further incentivize customers to swap out or dispose of the ‘energy hogs’ lurking in their homes.

The 2016 program includes the following rebates and appliances:

$100: 

  • Refrigerator 15.0 cubic feet or larger, with proof of Belmont DPW or vendor disposal. 
  • Central air conditioner with a SEER rating greater than 14.
  • Room air conditioner, with proof of Belmont DPW or vendor disposal.

$75:

  • Dehumidifier.

$25:

  • Room air conditioner, without proof of disposal.

To participate in the 2016 program, residential customers must complete an application and submit required documentation by Jan. 21, 2017. Applications are available at the Belmont Light webpage and going to the “Energy Solutions” site and then to “Residential Programs” or at Belmont Light’s office at 40 Prince St.

For additional information, please call Belmont Light at 617-993-2800 or email EnergyResources@BelmontLight.com.

New Phone Scam Targeting Belmont Light Customers

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Photo: Beware of the new way people are attempting to scam Belmont residents.

Belmont Light customers should be on guard against a telephone scam that involves callers impersonating Belmont Light staff. As part of the recent scam, several Belmont residents received a phone call with a pre-recorded message urging Belmont Light customers to schedule an appointment for a meter upgrade to help avoid increases in electric rates.

Ed Crisafi, Belmont Light operations manager, asks customers to be extra cautious when setting up meter-related appointments or granting anyone access to their homes. Crisafi confirmed that Belmont Light employees always carry identification when visiting customers in-person, so residents and business owners should not engage with anyone who cannot show credible identification.

The caller specifically mentions “Belmont Light customers,” but does not provide any identifying information, such as his or her name or employer information. The tone of the calls can be construed as pushy, or even threatening. This recent scam alert is separate from those issued by Belmont Light in 2014 and 2015 about scammers calling customers to demand payments and money orders. 

Residents or business owners who encounter a suspicious phone call should hang up and report the incident to Belmont Light at 617-993-2800 or customerservice@belmontlight.com

Customers should be aware that Belmont Light has spent the past few years upgrading all of its customers’ electric meters for its nearly complete Smart Grid Project. However, Belmont Light always provides written notice prior to performing meter work and will never utilize pre-recorded phone messages to arrange appointments with customers.

Any calls initiated by Belmont Light to customers will originate directly from Belmont Light’s customer service or meter departments, rather than from a blocked or “1-800” number. Belmont Light staff members also clearly identify themselves during phone calls. 

Regarding phone calls, Crisafi added that customers should not hesitate in ending calls if they feel suspicious.

“If you aren’t absolutely convinced that it is Belmont Light calling when you did not initiate the call yourself, please do not be afraid to hang up and dial us directly. We want our customers to be safe, and if it is actually Belmont Light calling because of a billing or meter-related matter, we will not be offended if you need to restart the call to feel comfortable,” he said.

Crisafi also explained that as Belmont Light has already replaced 99.8 percent of the meters in town, customers who have had their meters converted recently should be immediately tipped off that requests for additional meter work are probably fraudulent. 

Here Come [More] Sun: Solar Installation Exceeds Year Goal in Three Months

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Photo: The logo and challenge of Belmont Goes Solar.

For supporters of solar power in Belmont, the past six months has been heady times as the popularity of the alternative energy source has gone through the roof.

Or, more appropriately, going ONTO the roofs of Belmont homeowners.

Since the implementation of a solar power policy for homeowners and small commercial businesses on Sept. 30, 2015 and the efforts of a newly-established volunteers group, the number of homes that have and are in the process of installing solar arrays has increased fivefold, according to Roger Colton, the co-chair of the town’s Energy Committee, told the Light Board on Monday, March 14.

The Light Board, which oversees the town’s electrical utility, is made up of the Board of Selectmen.

Capitalizing on a 30 percent federal investment tax credit, a discount from installer Direct Energy Solar, the establishment of a stable tariff that provided solar companies “a level of financial certainty” and the efforts of the two-month-old Belmont Goes Solar campaign, the number of homes with solar panels has shot up from 25 on Oct. 1, to 125 qualified and ready for solar installation, already exceeding the goal of 100 homes for 2016 in just 10 weeks.

“Demand is going up, day after day,” said Colton, who heads the Belmont Goes Solar Initiative.

Producing a map of installations, Colton, said the homes with solar power panels is literally everywhere in Belmont, and, which Colton said in the parlance of young people, “that’s ‘very cool’.” 

The Goes Solar campaign is supported by Belmont Light, the Belmont Public Schools, the Board of Selectmen, Sustainable Belmont, and the local chapter of Mothers Out Front. 

“It shows that when the community works together, programs to improve the community work,” said Colton. 

Since it reached its goal of 100 households going solar, Direct Energy Solar is donating $25,000 to the town towards a solar system on a Belmont school or a municipal building.

Due to the rapid number of residents seeking to install solar arrays, the Light Board – with a nod of approval from the town’s electrical utility, Belmont Light, and the Temporary Net Metering Working Group that created Belmont’s solar policy – has lifted the 1,000 kW ceiling on capacity as Belmont residents have already exceeded the amount.

While supportive of suspending the cap, Roy Epstein, the working group’s chair, said he wanted a date specific in the fall when to revisit establishing a new limit.

Colton encourages Belmont residents to sign-up for a free solar evaluation of their home. More than 70 percent of the homes that have signed-up for an assessment thus far, he notes, “qualified” for the installation of solar panels. 

The next opportunity for residents to meet and talk personally with Belmont Goes Solar volunteers and Direct Energy Solar staff will be Saturday, April 2 from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. at a “Meet the Installer” event at the Beech Street Center, 266 Beech St. The presentation will also address the particular circumstances of condo owners. 

Belmont homeowners can sign-up for a free solar assessment here