Westport
in Brief!
EverythingWestport.com
Sunday,
December 13, 2015
photos/EverythingWestport.com except as noted
Quick
Article Index . . .
Former Selectman Gary Mauk takes issue with Con Edison Community Electricity
Plan.
|
Former selectman takes
issue with Con Edison Solutions’ Community Electricity Aggregation Program. Confusion on simple by-law amendment ties up town
meeting. EverythingWestport.com Wednesday,
December 9, 2015 Ignore this letter
at your peril, says former Selectman Gary Mauk. If you recently
received the envelope shown below in the mail, it is in your best interest to
have opened it; ignoring it automatically enrolled you into a discount
electric rate program that many residents are now questioning, and was the
focus of a former Westport Selectman who said the Select Board may have
overstepped its bounds. The innocuous,
plain-looking letter looks like junk email.
Selectmen voted unilaterally
and unanimously several weeks ago to accept a proposal from Con Edison Solutions, a
leading energy services company that provides competitive power supply,
renewable energy, sustainability services, and cost-effective energy
solutions for commercial, industrial, residential, and government customers,
according to its website. All Westport
residential and commercial customers would be automatically enrolled in the
price savings program for a period of two years. You do, however, have the option to opt out of the program,
but you are responsible for They say no good
deed goes unpunished. Former Selectman
Gary Mauk is concerned that many residents would
not be aware of the program they were automatically enrolled in without their
permission, or might not be aware they could opt out of a program they were
unaware of in the first place. Further, Mauk was concerned that, when the program expired in two
years, costs could rise substantially and unwary customers could take big
hits on their electric bill. The two-year deal
would provide electricity (supply only, does not include distribution costs)
at $0.09490/kWh as compared to Eversource at
$0.10804/kWh for residential customers.
Letter – Page 1 Letter – Page
2 Opt-Out
Reply Card Click on the
above images to read the letter and Opt-Out Reply Card. Former Selectman
Gary Mauk is further concerned that many residents
would not be aware of the program they were automatically enrolled in without
their permission, or might not be aware they could opt out of a program they
were unaware of in the first place. Further, Mauk was troubled that when the program expired in two
years, costs could rise substantially and unwary customers could take big
hits on their electric bill. With declining
oil prices now below $30 a barrel, utilities will be pressured to focus on
competitively pricing residential electricity offerings. Westport Cultural
Council is pleased to announce its 2015-2016 Grant Awards for individuals and organizations. EverythingWestport.com Sunday, December
13, 2015 After
reviewing many deserving applications for the fall grant cycle, the Westport
Cultural Council is pleased to announce its 2015-2016 Grant Awards for
individuals and organizations. The WCC
received over $12,000 in Local Cultural Council grant requests with just over
$5,000 in funds to distribute. This year WCC received new applications
for school programs and field trips offering interesting and fun learning
experiences, as well as annual events enjoyed by residents of Westport and
surrounding communities. Congratulations
to all 2015-16 WCC Grant Awardees:
Madeline Brager for The Art Drive; Westport River
Watershed Alliance for Buoy Please visit their
website
for a detailed list of the grant awards. Throughout
this year, the WCC accomplished a great deal. In June, a community
gathering at an historic Westport farm celebrated recent and past recipients
of WCC cultural grants. It was a wonderful opportunity for
representatives of town government, non-profit organizations, and individual
artists to mingle and discuss their work. Also in June,
Westport Cultural Council members designed and staffed a booth at River Day,
the Westport River Watershed Association’s annual family-oriented event held
on the banks of the Westport River. We were delighted to meet so many
of our neighbors who have participated in the wide variety of WCC funded
events offered throughout the year in the community. August
brought the WCC’s fourth annual Film Series, presenting three documentary
films each about a world-renowned architect. Our thanks go to
Westport’s Dedee Shattuck Gallery for again
providing a beautiful venue for this always well-attended late summer event. During fall
meetings WCC members fine-tuned its grant award criteria to best promote
access and support for the arts, humanities, and interpretive sciences in our
community. The updated information is on our website. The Westport
Cultural Council is one in a statewide network of local councils funded by
the Massachusetts Cultural Council, appropriated by the Legislature in its
annual state budget. We sincerely appreciate the support of our
legislators, who this year helped avoid a reduction in arts funding. The Westport
Cultural Council applauds the work of all the cultural groups and artists in
our town. We invite potential grant applicants to visit our Facebook page and learn more at www.westportculturalcouncil.org. © 2015 Community Events of Westport. All rights
reserved. EverythingWestport.com |
