Peabody City Council holds Ad Hoc Committee Meeting

The Peabody City Council held an Ad Hoc Committee on Energy, Efficiently and Renewable Energy meeting on Thursday, April 14, 2022, at 6:30 PM. The following items were on the agenda:

Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE)

• Program for energy improvements on commercial/industrial buildings, multifamily properties with five or more units, and buildings owned by non-profits
• Property owners agree to a betterment assessment and a lien on their property to pay for long-term energy upgrades that reduce fossil fuels emissions

Criteria to Becoming a Designated Green Community

• Provide as-of-right siting in the designated locations in which alternative and renewable energy could be generated or researched
• Adopt an expedited application and permit process for as-of-right energy facilities
• Establish an energy use base line and develop a plan to reduce energy use by (20%) within five (5) years
• Purchase only fuel-efficient vehicles
• Set requirements to minimize life-cycle energy costs for new construction; one way to meet these requirements is to adopt the Stretch Energy Code

Net Zero Climate Action Planning Process

• The City of Peabody’s Community Development department was awarded a grant to participate in a net zero planning project led by MAPC (Metropolitan Area Planning Council)
• The project involves taking an inventory of all the emissions from the town, and then developing a viable roadmap to net zero carbon emissions.

NSR will continue to follow developments from this discussion and any proposals made to the City Council.