June 7, 2007

By Diane Chiddister

At their meeting Monday, June 4, members of Village Council approved the formation of a new electrical system task force. The group, composed of community members, is charged with assessing the reliability of the Village’s current electrical system and with identifying conservation measures that the Village could take to reduce consumption. Overall, the task force will identify questions that Council needs answered to determine whether or not to build a new $3.5 million electric substation.

The vote was 3–1, with Karen Wintrow, Kathryn Van Der Heiden and Judith Hempfling voting for the task force, and Kathryn Chase voting against. Bruce Rickenbach was absent due to illness.

The task force had been proposed by Wintrow and Hempfling in response to a recommendation several months ago by a consulting engineer that the Village purchase a new substation because its current switching station is overextended under its current load. Village Manager Eric Swansen also recommended the new substation, citing a near brownout last summer.

However, Hempfling and some villagers expressed concerns about both the substation’s cost and the need to conserve energy in the face of global warming and peak oil issues rather than doubling the Village’s electrical use capacity, as the new substation would do. In a previous meeting, Wintrow stated that she proposed the task force as a way for villagers to feel their questions and concerns were being addressed.

At Monday’s meeting, Wintrow described the group as “pretty phenomenal.”

Task force members are Benji Maruyama, materials engineer; Steve Conn, history professor and member of the Environmental Control Commission; Roy Eastman, owner of Electroshield and former Council member; Richard Zopf, Miami Township Zoning Inspector; Carol Gasho, Community Resources; Pat Murphy, executive director of The Community Solution; David Heckler, former Village manager; Paul Abendroth, retired systems engineer; and Reggie Stratton, The Antioch Company. The resource person for the group will be Bob Brecha, physics professor at University of Dayton.

“I hope this will be a model of a more open process and really using the resources of the community,” Hempfling said.

While the task force proposal has provoked considerable debate in previous meetings, the issue passed Monday night with little discussion.

In a prepared statement that she read, Chase stated her “strong support” for the construction of the new substation as necessary to meet the electrical needs of the village. She also stated that she does not believe that “aggressive conservation” will negate that need.

But the task force will not necessarily recommend that the Village not go ahead with the substation, Wintrow said. Rather, its task is to provide the necessary information so that Council can make that decision.

According to the written proposal, the task force will work in two phases. The first phase will focus on the Village’s current electrical system, identifying condition, safety, reliability and demand capability. It will also determine the Village’s future electrical needs considering growth rates of 1, 2 and 3 percent annually.

In its second phase, the task force will research current trends and initiatives in energy conservation, and make recommendations to Council for a conservation program, identify electricity consumption impacts of green building practices, research renewable power generation and make recommendations regarding the Village’s portfolio mix of renewable energy sources.

According to the proposal, the task force will convene within 30 days, will deliver a report to Council on phase one within 90 days after its first meeting and will present a final report no later than 90 days after that.

Other items from Monday’s meeting will be covered in next week’s News.

Contact: dchiddister@ysnews.com