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Council rescinds energy audit resolution
(by Megan Burrow - September 10, 2008)
Westwood’s plan to have an energy audit performed to cut the borough’s energy costs has hit a snag as the chosen company has been taken off of the state approved list. If Westwood used the state approved company, the borough would be eligible for a $30,000 grant.
The borough voted to rescind the resolution approving the company’s services at the Sept. 2 council meeting.
“We were disappointed,” Borough Administrator Bob Hoffmann said at the meeting. “This was something we have been waiting for and we were ready to go.”
The energy audit is a key component of the borough’s plan for energy independence. It would involve a thorough inspection of all municipal buildings to examine what could be changed to make them more energy efficient.
The borough had passed a resolution last spring approving the selection of Metro Energy to perform the audit and was prepared to go ahead with the plan until learning last week that the company had been taken off of the state list and therefore its services would no longer be covered by state grant money.
Several other municipalities in northern New Jersey including the
Village of
Ridgewood had chosen Metro Energy and are now left to come up with a new option.
Hoffmann suggested soliciting proposals from other companies, whether they are on the state approved list or not. He said that some companies would be willing to take the cost of the energy audit out of the borough’s future savings so Westwood would not have to budget for the service.
Mayor John Birkner added that the borough would not see an immediate savings – it would have to spend to implement the suggested changes, like replacing windows and doors, but it would be well worth it in the long run.
The borough has been waiting to implement the audit since April, when the state originally was supposed to roll out the new program. Six companies, including Metro Energy, had been vetted and approved, and Westwood was eager to get started. Once a company is approved, the audit would take about 60 days to complete.
In the time the borough has waited, utility prices have jumped twice, essentially costing Westwood as much as the grant money would have been.
Hoffmann expressed his frustration in a phone interview. “The utility companies are asking for a 20 percent rate increase. They received a 17.2 percent increase in June. Westwood’s rate increase could be as high as $20,000. The grant is for $30,000. If the state delays the program again we'll spend more on rate increases than what the program would cost.”
Megan Burrow's e-mail address is burrow@northjersey.com.
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