Central Garage Project Manager Jeff Lehman updates City Council on project costs (June 12, 2023)

The City of Jamestown’s Central Garage project is around $389,000 over budget.

Former Public Works Director and current Project Manager Jeff Lehman updated Jamestown City Council on the Washington Street facility project on Monday night.

He said the total original budget was $5,334,487 which included $4 million for the project, a $1 million state grant, and a $500,000 NYSERDA grant the city applied for to make the building all electric, “Because we did not get the NYSERDA grant, so we decided to go back to gas where we originally were with the building which saved us $242,000 and change on the mechanical and, sadly, only $47,741 on the electrical.”

Lehman said due to the Pandemic, bids then came in 20 to 30% higher than when the project was first put together three and a half years ago.

He said at this point the project is about 90% complete except for the electric package that needs to go in, which probably won’t get shipped until mid October. He added that the building is up and running with crews using the old electric service.

Lehman said $5,146,706 has been expended so far with about $577,000 remaining in work items that include landscaping, drainage, and parking lot repairs which will be done in-house, “Lifts are a big one. We pulled that one out of the original contract and so we plan on having one new lift and moving two of the existing lifts from 155 Steele down there. So, that’s $170,000. Oil storage and containment unit, we blocked off $50,000 for that. Again, that’s a requirement. And a CO2 Detection System, that’s just the air monitoring in the building.”

Lehman said a crane system also needs to be installed in the garage bays. Following the remaining work, the total project costs will be $5,723,706; or $389,219 over budget.

Central Garage Project Budget

He said the project will likely be completed by winter which could be tough because the city will be in snowplow season at that point.

Mayor Eddie Sundquist said the city hadn’t bonded for the full amount of the project and will being putting forward a resolution to do that.

Photo courtesy of Jamestown Public Schools

The Jamestown Board of Public Utilities and Jamestown Public School District have received a grant to study converting their bus fleet to all-electric operation.

The $95,623 award from the New York State Energy and Research Development Authority (NYSERDA) will go toward a comprehensive feasibility and planning study for the district’s bus fleet and facility conversion to an all-electric operation.

Recent changes to state law require that public school districts begin purchasing electric buses by 2027, with an all-electric fleet by 2035. The transition requires a thorough evaluation of the infrastructure necessary to support the full conversion to electric buses.

As the sole provider of electric power in the community, the Jamestown BPU must provide the necessary infrastructure to maintain an electric fleet. The BPU has proposed an evaluation process that will assess the electric distribution system, fleet garage electric service and charging requirements, fleet requirements and a cost-benefit analysis of converting the current district bus facility to an all-electric operation.

The potential for energy efficiency and an on-site solar application are other aspects of the evaluation.

The district maintains a fleet of 42 buses that are required for the daily transportation of approximately 750 pupils. Although most students live within walking distance of a school, transportation is provided to those who live in a transportation safety zone, students with special needs, and students educated in out-of-district settings.

Two companies, Stark Tech Group and Emerald Alternative Energy, will complete the project within a six to nine-month time frame.

BPU Business Development Coordinator Ellen Ditonto said the conference is one part of a $750,000 NYSERDA (New York State Energy Research and Development Authority) grant the BPU received to help rebuild and retool Western New York.

She said the conference is designed for manufacturers, public sector employees, and businesses, “And this is to help us decide how can we become part of the climate tech, or clean tech, sector. As you know, there are federal and state legislation laws that have been passed now that require changes to reduce greenhouse gases and to move into alternative energy sources.”

Ditonto said they’re looking for manufacturers to move into clean technologies like making parts for electric vehicles (EVs), solar manufacturing, and wind power.

The conference will take place October 17 through 19.

Ditonto said a final webinar ahead of the conference will be held on Tuesday, September 13 featuring Empire State Development (ESD) Director of Industry Development David Whipple and Launch NY President and CEO Dr. Marnie LaVigne. The link to register is available here: https://whova.com/web/QI@22lQwk6A87Aa@hPTaGntUwUVryQuGtn7QxZ5vPZA=/%20%20Webinars/

FUZEHUB, which is a consortium of 11 not-for-profit agencies that provides resources to manufacturers in New York State, talked with Jamestown Board of Public Utilities‘ Kris Sellstrom about economic development opportunities available in the climate tech/clean tech supply chain. They also discussed how regional manufacturers can take advantage of financing opportunities from public and private sources to help transition their businesses.

Sellstrom also outlined the highlights of the conference that will take place October 17 through 19 in Jamestown.

The Jamestown BPU received a multi-year grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to facilitate a program with numerous economic development partners about the potential for climate tech manufacturing in our region. The Retool’22 Conference is one part of this initiative, which also includes manufacturing studies and marketing of our region to attract entrepreneurs and manufacturers.

The link to the podcast is available on the FUZEHUB website at https://fuzehub.com/podcasts/episode-52-revolutionizing-climate-tech-with-retool22/

Registration and agenda information for the Retool’22 Conference is available at: https://bit.ly/Retool22

Jamestown Local Development Corporation Board meeting

The Jamestown Local Development Corporation board has approved downtown programming funds for several events, including the four proposed by Collaborative Children’s Solutions.

CCS Director Patrick Smeraldo requested $40,000 for four events that would span seven days.

The events that would take place include a children’s carnival downtown followed by a Tarp Skunks game at Diethrick Stadium on June 24; a Christmas in July event downtown on July 22 and possibly a three-on-three basketball tournament downtown followed by a Tarp Skunks game on July 23; a beer tasting event downtown on September 3 and the Labor Day Fest at Bergman Park on September 4; and an event around a scheduled hockey tournament at the Northwest Arena on December 2 with the downtown holiday parade on December 3. All four events would include fireworks.

Smeraldo said the events are designed to be for kids and families and that he’s not trying to make a profit on them, “I mean, we can put on these events for kids and then take the funds that are raised through grants and things like that or agencies coming in and then put on a Chris Heron, who came here and spoke to the kids at Jamestown High School. That’s the intent. To feed the money back into the kids and see how we can draw and create opportunities for them.”

Mayor Eddie Sundquist informed the JLDC board members that Smeraldo has been working with city staff to ensure the proposed events are in compliance.

The Board of Public Utilities had requested $50,000 in programming funds for a Climate Technology Conference. This conference is being funded in part by a NYSERDA grant received by the BPU that had a required match by the City of Jamestown. The two-day event is scheduled to take place October 18 and 19, 2022 and would tentatively utilize the Northwest Arena, Doubletree Hotel, and several other ancillary spaces downtown. JLDC approved the request contingent on approval by Corporation Counsel on the legality of a city entity using the program funds as the match.

The third proposal approved was a $6,000 request by Doug Sitler for a 10,000 Maniacs concert. The event had previously been awarded $25,000 in downtown programming funds but hadn’t included a request for sound and lighting. The total now approved for the event is $31,000.

New York State’s Climate Action Council, Department of Environmental Conservation, and New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) announced the release of the plan which describes recommended policies and actions to help New York meet its ambitious climate directives as part of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (Climate Act).

The Draft Scoping Plan, found at https://climate.ny.gov/, is available for a 120-day public comment period that started January 1. Residents may submit comments online, by email at scopingplan@nyserda.ny.gov, and via U.S. mail to Attention: Draft Scoping Plan Comments, NYSERDA, 17 Columbia Circle, Albany, NY 12203-6399.

The public comment period will also include at least six public hearings across the State. Details and information about how to participate in the public hearings will be announced in early 2022.

The Climate Action Council’s seven advisory panels – Transportation, Agriculture and Forestry, Land Use and Local Government, Power Generation, Energy Efficiency and Housing, Energy Intensive and Trade Exposed Industries, and Waste – along with the Climate Justice Working Group and Just Transition Working Group, submitted recommendations for the Climate Action Council to consider in the development of the Draft Scoping Plan that will help guide the State in achieving its statutory obligations under the Climate Act to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increase renewable energy development, ensure climate justice, and advance the State’s commitment to carbon neutrality economy-wide by 2050.

The recommendations from the advisory panels, along with feedback from the Climate Justice Working Group, helped to advance an integration analysis process, which provided a cost-benefit assessment of the strategies under consideration accounting for emissions reductions and health benefits.

The Draft Scoping Plan has now been submitted to the Governor and the Legislature. Public input received on the plan will be used by the Climate Action Council to help develop the Final Scoping Plan, which will be posted online and delivered to the Governor and the Legislature by January 1, 2023. The DEC will release regulations based on the plan by January 1, 2024.

Households in danger of running out of heating fuel or having their utility service shut off will be able to apply for a second emergency benefit through the federal Home Energy Assistance Program beginning February 12.

More information, including how to apply, can be found at NYSERDA.NY.gov/All-Programs/Programs/EmPower-New-York.

Senator Young’s office says that Comprehensive home energy audits can be scheduled through a program administered by the New York State Energy Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA), with the assessments available to many New York residents for free or reduced costs.

Contractors associated with the program conduct the assessments and provide a detailed list of energy efficiency recommendations to homeowners. A ten percent cashback incentive is available for certain improvements.

Many homeowners may qualify for grants or loans to accomplish the improvements, depending on household income.

Additionally, the Weatherization Assistance Program helps income-eligible individuals and families with identifying and making energy efficiency improvements in their homes. The program is administered by the New York State Homes and Community Renewal agency, and more information can be found at:

www.nyshcr.org/Programs/WeatherizationAssistance/

More energy efficiency information is also available on NYSERDA’s website and through the federal government’s Energy Star website.

On Friday the Governor announced a new program under Charge NY to accelerate the market adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and to make EV infrastructure easier to use and more economically viable in New York State. The Electric Vehicle-Enabling Technology Demonstration Program offers a total of $2 million to help fund research and demonstration projects related to electric vehicles.

The new demonstration program seeks applications from entities such as universities, research centers, and technology-based businesses and manufacturers conducting research in and development of EV technology. The program is funded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).

According to the governor, the state would like to establish a statewide network of up to 3,000 EV charging stations over the next five years, saying this latest program will help to meet that goal.

Proposals for the Electric Vehicle-Enabling Technology Demonstration Program are due October 22. For more information on the Electric Vehicle-Enabling Technology Demonstration Program, visit www.nyserda.ny.gov/PON2755.