City getting ‘Smart’ about energy
0 Comments | Patriot Ledger, The; Quincy, Mass., Jul 13, 2010 | by Jack Encarnacao
QUINCY
Quincy is using an $880,000 federal grant to study its energy use, hire an energy manager and launch a citywide campaign called “Energy Smart Quincy.”
As part of the program, the Massachusetts Energy Consumers Alliance, a nonprofit organization run by former Quincy City Councilor Larry Chretien, will link residents with free energy audits offered by National Grid vendors, who also recommend home improvements to save money.
“We’re going to really blow the roof off participation in these programs,” Chretien said.
Maura O’Gara, Mass. Energy’s energy program coordinator, will be its point person for Quincy residents.
While announcing the program outside city hall Monday, she asked interested residents to call her at 617-750-4329. A website – www.energysmartquincy.org – is also available.
O’Gara said National Grid’s energy-savings programs “have a much better response if they have a local presence.”
Two Quincy residents in whose homes O’Gara coordinated energy audits were presented with energy-efficient power strips Monday as tokens of appreciation.
The program also calls for hiring an energy manager to study municipal energy use and suggest ways to make it more efficient.
Mayor Thomas Koch said the city is “aggressively looking” for the manager, who will work in the department of public buildings.
“We’ve got feelers out now,” he said.
The manager, who will be paid $250,000 over three years, must cut the city’s energy use by 20 percent. He or she will have the technical expertise to not only monitor, but also repair and maintain, the city’s energy systems, Koch said.