Chester has illuminated a chance to save more than $30,000 in annual streetlight operations costs thanks to a five-year study by the Chester Energy Team.

On Feb. 15 Chester held a special Town Meeting at 7:30 p.m. to vote on the Chester Streetlight Conversion Project. After a presentation by Tanko Streetlighting, Inc., three motions were approved unanimously by the 19 attendees: to authorize the purchase of the town’s streetlights from Eversource, to enter into a contract with Tanko to audit the streetlight inventory and replace the lights with LED fixtures, and to execute an agreement for a Connecticut Energy Fund loan to fund the project.

“Moving to LED makes sense in terms of cost savings and being more sustainable,” said Energy Team member Ed Meehan. “We also get better light quality and focus, so there’s an increased safety factor.”

The initial purchase of the streetlights from Eversource at net book value will cost $69,863. The town has already approved and released funds for this purchase as part of its 2016-2017 fiscal year budget, and a copy of the proposed contract with the utility company is on file in the Town Clerk’s office.

According to First Selectman Lauren Gister, the lights are due to be replaced, and at this time, the town has the option to either convert the fixtures through Eversource, or take ownership of the fixtures and thereby have more control over the types of light sources used around the town, and also look at more cost-effective and efficient lighting options.

There are an estimated 313 Eversource-owned lights that will be purchased from the utility company and then converted to LED, as well as 60 town-owned lights that will also be converted to LED. Eversource will retain ownership of the poles on which the light fixtures are placed, Gister said.

Approximately 20 municipalities across the state have converted to LED fixtures with Tanko Lighting, a national firm that partners with local subcontractors to install the systems. Changing over to LED fixtures provides more energy efficient lighting at a more affordable rate. LED proponents explained that light quality is also better than the bulbs currently used, so objects seen under LED light are more clearly identifiable at night—color is more distinguishable, and the light is directional so there is more control over what and where is illuminated. In this way, there is a component of increased public safety through greater visibility.

“Currently the lighting is not consistent,” Meehan said. “Clinton already did this, as did East Lyme and Old Lyme, so we had very good recommendations for this firm.”

The projected timetable would see the town in a contract with Tanko in early March, with the final conversion completed by the end of August. An audit will identify all of the fixtures that need to be replaced; this will include the Chester Village Center area where additional work to connect the center to the bridge renovation work completed in 2016 is yet to be completed. A pilot program would provide a test run of four fixtures—two on main roads and two on auxiliary roads—to fine-tune the conversion.

The projected costs for the conversion project are broken into two components: the purchase and conversion of the Eversource-owed streetlights, and the conversion of the town-owned lights. For the conversion of the 60 town-owned lights, which include those in parking lots, at Town Hall, the Meeting House, and the library, the estimated cost to replace the existing fixtures with new LED fixtures is $18,120. The change is projected to recoup the town an estimated $1,320 in annual electricity savings, which would work out to a simple payback period of 13.73 years.

For the 313 Eversource-owned streetlights, the initial cost of $69,863 to purchase the streetlights from the utility company would be covered through funds previously approved and released during the 2016-2017 fiscal year budget process. The Tanko audit and design is estimated at $7,825, and the LED fixture installation is estimated at $88,991. There is also $9,682 budgeted for contingencies. The total project cost comes to $176,361, but after a $29,691 rebate from Eversource, the net project cost is estimated at $146,670. While $75,000 is already available, the remainder of the funding would come from a Connecticut Energy Fund loan of up to $100,000 at no interest for a four-year term, as approved by a unanimous majority vote during the special town meeting.

The benefit to the town, according to Gister and the research done by the Chester Energy Team, is in the projected annual savings. The current annual cost of the streetlight operation for the Eversource-owned lights is $45,541, whereas the projected annual total operating costs after conversion to LED, including maintenance and repair, is $12,391. This works out to a projected annual savings of $33,150, where a simple payback of net project costs would be completed in 4.42 years. According to the presentation by the Energy Team, the projected net 10–year savings for Chester, adjusting for estimated three percent cost inflation, works out to $233,358, or total operating cost savings of $380,028 less the $146,670 net project cost.

After Tanko’s presentation, Town Meeting attendees asked questions of both the presenters and the energy team. Concerns included clarifying if the lights purchased would be town lights only, or include those on the state roads—the purchase is for the lights in town only—and whether or not the lights that are in the still-to-be-renovated village center would be included in the audit.

Also of concern were the projected maintenance costs, which work out to $1 per fixture per month, a rate guaranteed through a contract with Tanko for three years. At the end of the three-year period, the town has a choice of assuming responsibility for the fixtures itself, choosing a local subcontractor, or entering a new maintenance contract with Tanko.

In case of power outages, a concern during Connecticut winters, local subcontractors from a Wallingford firm would be on the scene within two hours. Another resident questioned if, after the audit it was determined that not all 313 lights were required, the town would still have to purchase 313 lights from Tanko. Though all 313 lights must be purchased from Eversource, there is no obligation to replace all of them if during the audit and subsequent planning a more efficient system is determined.

Places that do not already have a light on a utility pole cannot have a light added—if there is no pole, there is no power. Every Tanko fixture has controls on the fixtures itself and can be adapted to a variety of modifications in the future, including wifi capabilities.

“We’ve been talking about this for five years, and it’s a good solution. We have to find places to save money given all the cuts. They have an aggressive schedule to install the new system, too. We can control our own destiny,” said Meehan.

All future presentations of processes and proposals will be handled by the Chester Energy Committee in the future. Further information on the purchase contract with Eversource, Tanko’s proposal, the Chester Energy Team’s evaluation of cost and energy savings, and the Connecticut Energy Fund loan can be found through the Town Clerk’s office.