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HomeMy Public PortalAboutGolf Commission Packet 07.27.20 MEETING NOTICE TOWN OF BREWSTER GOLF COMMISSION Location: Remote Participation Only Date: July 27, 2020 Time: 4:00 PM This meeting will be conducted by remote participation pursuant to Governor Baker’s March 2020 orders suspending certain Open Meeting Law provisions and imposing limits on public gatherings. No in -person meeting attendance will be permitted. If the Town is unable to live broadcast this meeting, a record of the proceedings will be provided on the Town website as soon as possible. The Town has established specific email addresses for each board and committee so the public can submit comments either before or during the meeting. To submit public comment or questions to the Golf Commission, please email: golfcommission@brewster-ma.gov. To view the: • Live broadcast: Tune to Brewster Government TV Channel 18 • Livestream: Go to www.livestream.brewster-ma.gov • Audio/video recording: Go to www.tv.brewster-ma.gov AGENDA 1. Call to Order 2. Review and refine (as needed) brief summary of discussions and actions taken by Brewster Golf Commission regarding solar array projects proposed for Captains Golf Course Driving Range and Captains Golf Course Starboard Parking Lot. Discuss and clarify Commission's current position on project. 3. Adjournment Date Posted: Date Revised: Date & Time Received by Town Clerk’s Office Golf Commission Meeting Minutes relative to Solar Canopy Projects Minutes 1/8/19 Discussion regarding what, if any, conditions benefiting The Captains the Commission should request be incorporated in the RFP specs for this project. Carl Blanchard, Dave Valcourt and Jeff Odell will make contact with the energy committee and CVEC and Cape Light Compact representatives to discuss possible Captains input. Minutes 2/11/19 Mark O’Brien reported that a site visit by CVEC will be conducted with potential RFP respondents on Feb. 20th at the Captains. Carl Blanchard suggested a meeting with Energy committee members Chuck Hanson and Colin O’Dell might be helpful to understand project objectives and benefits for golf operations. This meeting TBD by Chair of Golf Commission. Minutes 3/12/19 There was significant discussion regarding the RFP for solar project being considered for the large parking lot and driving range areas. Details from CVEC /Liz Argo regarding bid responses to the RFP should be available shortly. Carl Blanchard, Jeff Odell, and Dave Valcourt are the solar POCs for the commission. Among the new information is that our project can be an “in- front-of –the -meter lease” rather than an energy credit, behind the meter compensation. The straight lease rather than credits appears most attractive at this point and will facilitate evaluation of the bid offerings. John Piemontese reminded the commission that the Captains and Town were not obligated or committed at this point. Discussion to be continued regarding loss of natural beauty, flexibility for use of terrain, and fiscal benefit over a 20 year commitment. Looking at a recommendation/decision week of 25 March and an announcement o/a 15 April. Minutes 4/11/19 Colin Odell and Chuck Hanson from the Energy Committee joined the Commission meeting. Both of them had been involved in the vendor interview process along with the Cape and Vineyard Electric Cooperative, Inc. (CVEC), Mark O’Brien and Jeff Odell. Mark advised the commission that 3 vendors had been interviewed for the golf course solar project which involves the Starboard parking lot as well as the driving range. Ultimately it is CVEC who awards the individual town projects (such as the golf course) to a particular vendor. Jeff Odell gave a brief overview of the three vendors who had bid on the golf course project. This included a discussion of the role that Eversource plays in driving an implementation date. He further advised that the proposed golf course project would be a straight 20 year lease. He distributed a Utility Cost Upgrade Sensitivity Analysis which had been prepared by Colin Odell which allowed the commission to see the value of the project under three Utility Upgrade Scenarios. He also distributed a photographic rendering of the project. NOTE: These documents were returned to Jeff at the end of the meeting. Upon questioning from the commission, the two members of the Energy Committee advised that their committee was generally in favor of the project. A question was raised regarding the possibility of unforeseen increases in the upgrade cost and the commission was advised that the vendor is liable for any such increases. Discussion followed about other potential options other than the one being presented at the meeting. Positive impacts for the golf course, other than the net annual lease payments, were brought up including the town’s movement towards becoming a ‘Green Community’. A motion was made by Jeff Odell and seconded by Anne O’Connell to endorse the forwarding of the proposal to the Selectboard for their approval. The motion carried 5-1. NOTE: Andrea Johnson was not present. After the motion was approved, Pete Ervin spoke about the project from a maintenance and aesthetics perspective. The Commission advised Pete that they value his opinion. Minutes 5/11/19 Mark informed the meeting that CVEC has experienced some snags in the process however GE has submitted applications to Eversource. Minutes 6/11/19 Mark, Carl and Jeff provided the following: CVEC meeting moving forward. Eversource connectivity with GE as vendor, but nothing probably happening until fall of 2020. Front loaded contract, we receive payments when first connection made. Eversource will determine pace of project. Minutes 7/7/19 Still waiting for power company action. Charging stations will be available in lot for electric vehicles, numbers no known. Details forthcoming. Minutes 8/13/19 Jeff reported that we are still waiting for a contract but are assured that pricing will be as discussed previously. Minutes 9/10/19 Peter Lombardi provided an update on solar project. He indicated that Brewster’s negotiations with GE/Con-Ed/Eversource were all on track. Town Select Board is currently holding policy discussions for how solar revenues should be distributed and administrative fees/property taxes assessed. Minutes 10/8/19 Has been delayed slightly. Is in review by town attorneys and is expected to be on selectboard agenda in next couple of meetings. Financial relationship between town and golf course still to be determined. Minutes 11/12/19 Jeff Odell reported the selectboard voted to go forward allowing Peter Lombardi to sign the contracts when they are finalized. Minutes 1/14/20 Anne O’Connell discussed rumors surrounding the revenues generated from the solar canopy project in the parking lot suggesting that the golf course may not benefit from the revenues. It was decided that Anne O’Connell would draft a letter to the Select Board to request clarification on this issue. NOTE: Email sent to then Select Board Chair and liaison to Golf Commission, Dave Whitney, requesting clarification of comments made during select board meeting that revenue from golf solar arrays would not necessarily go to golf course. No response was received. Minutes 2/11/20 The Town has missed the deadline to participate in the Phase 3 portion of the CVEC project and is now in phase 4, which reduces the potential revenue to the Town. Jeff Odell reported that the Eversource connection costs for the driving range portion came in at about $198,000. Much higher than expected. The net revenue that we can expect from the golf course solar canopies is now estimated at approximately $75,000 per year as oppose the $100,000 originally estimated. The Golf Commissioners felt that this amount was still worthwhile to pursue. Carl Blanchard floated the idea of renting out spaces under the solar canopies in the off-season once they were in place. All felt this idea was worth pursuing when and if the canopies are constructed. Minutes 3/10/20 The study is done. Eversource will not release any information pending payment by GE. Peter Lombardi reviewed the pending process. Minutes 6/16/20 Jeff reported that the amendments to the improved financial arrangement were being reviewed by the Town Council and test borings were being done. Mark reported that John Gammon from CFD was at the site and talked about starting staging in September. The permitting process has begun. The project should be ready to go in late September or early October. The window agreed upon was to start in late October because the range will have to be closed for the year when it gets under way. Peter Lombardi agreed that once they gain approval the company will be eager to get going. However we must ensure that the timeline works best for us. Jeff added that with a November start the expectation is an April connection date. That is important because the fee is paid to us upon connection. Peter was fairly certain that payment would be a lump sum payment upon connection. J. Odell Write-Up Evolution of Energy Project Proposals on The Captains Property: The town and the Brewster Energy Committee has considered using property of The Captains Golf Course for siting energy generation projects since at least 2007. Initial proposals for wind turbine installations on the east boundary of the driving range were abandoned in the face of public opposition. The town then turned to consideration solar energy as a more politically acceptable alternative. Subsequently, in 2010, a proposal was developed to use the west half of The Captains main parking lot for a solar installation. As a ground-based installation that project would have resulted in the loss of half of the west lot parking capacity. The Golf Commission was not initially consulted on this proposal. We learned of the project only after it had been brought to the design concept stage and was publicized in local newspapers. We were told it was an Energy Committee project not dependent upon Golf Commission approval. On March 8, 2011, at the golf commission’s request, then Asst. Town Administrator Jillian Douglas attended the golf commission meeting accompanied by Luke Hinkle of My Generation Energy, Inc., to discuss this solar array project. This project did not advance to the formal planning stage and was dropped. In 2017(18) The Captains received an independent proposal for solar canopy installations for portions of the main parking lot. In discussing that proposal with the town administration, we were informed the Energy Committee was again working with CVEC on a new solar project for a Captains parking lot and the town would only work through CVEC. No action was taken on the independent proposal. That Energy Committee/CVEC interaction resulted in the current projects proposed for The Captains main parking lot and driving range. Background RE: Revenue Considerations Brewster policy has consistently been that any revenue generated from use of Captains Golf Course property would be a revenue credit to the golf course regardless of whether those funds initially went into the town’s general fund. Speaking before the finance committee and select board meetings the then Town Administrator Charles Sumner had repeatedly stated that Brewster treated the golf course as an enterprise account for expense budgeting purposes. That concept was followed in multiple past practice situations. On March 8, 2011, then Asst. Town Administrator Jillian Douglas attended the golf commission meeting accompanied by Luke Hinkle of My Generation Energy, Inc. The purpose was to discuss use of a portion of The Captain’s west parking lot for a solar array project. Douglas stated “(T)he revenues from the solar project would go into the Town’s general fund, but the golf course would get credit for those revenues.” Commission members expressed concern that loss of parking spaces might hamper future event opportunities. Mark O’Brien stated his opinion that the continuous guaranteed revenues generated from the project would most likely outweigh the loss of some future unknown events. (See Golf Commission meeting minutes of March 8, 2011). That same presumption that the golf course received revenue credit for any such funds flowing to the town’s general fund was followed in the sale of Captains Course property for the Harwich subdivision built along the east end of the course. Current solar projects: It was in the context of the above cited past practice and the anticipation of a guaranteed continuous golf course revenue opportunity that the golf commission considered and participated in the current solar proposals. Carl Blanchard, John Piemontese, Jeff Odell and Mark O’Brien participated in the initial proposal review meetings, held at the course, along with representatives of the energy committee and CVEC. Jeff Odell and Mark O’Brien participated in the vendor finalist interviews at CVEC and the selection of the vendor for The Captains projects. O’Brien, Blanchard and Odell participated in the mandatory vendor site inspections along with the CEVEC representatives. CVEC initially proposed their usual “behind the meter” and “Power Purchase Agreement” models for The Captains projects. Blanchard, Odell and O’Brien objected as the course’s primary electricity load was nighttime irrigation and cart barn use and those models did not provide sufficient benefit to The Captains to justify the projects. We argued instead for a cash rental of air space over the parking lots as more beneficial to provide the cash flow to the golf budget as the town had proposed in 2011. The Brewster Energy Committee representatives, Chuck Hanson and Colin Odell concurred. At the golf commission’s request, and with the Energy Commission’s representatives concurrence, CVEC’s behind the meter and power purchase agreement models were abandoned in favor of the rental cash model to better benefit the golf course revenue opportunity. Furthermore, CVEC’s original RFP did not include the driving range lot. That project was subsequently included at our urging to further enhance the golf course revenue opportunity. Had the prospect of hosting these solar projects not included the anticipation of the direct financial benefit to The Captains the golf commission might not have endorsed the proposal.