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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021-03-23-SLC-min Sustainable Lexington Committee Minutes of Meeting of March 23, 2021 A meeting of the Sustainable Lexington Committee (SLC) was held by Zoom conference. A quorum of nine was present. Members Present: Cindy Arens, Celis Brisbin, Paul Chernick, Archana Dayalu, Marcia Gens, Rick Reibstein, Todd Rhodes (vice-chair), Dan Voss (chair), Charlie Wyman Members Absent: None Other Attendees: Stella Carr (Sustainability Director), Joe Pato (Select Board), Mark Sandeen (Select Board), Charles Hornig (Planning Board), Robert Peters (Planning Board), Paul Gromer (Peregrine Energy), Ricki Pappo (GWAC), Mary Hutton (MOF), Lin Jensen, Tina McBride The meeting was called to order at 6:03 pm. Todd referenced the opening statement requested by the Town Clerk, and all members present responded that they could hear. 1. Minutes. The minutes of February 23, March 2, and March 9 were approved as written. 2. Comments from residents; new business. None. 3. Farewell to Marcia. Members expressed their gratitude to Marcia, who is stepping down from committee membership. She will remain engaged in many of our issues and promised not to be a stranger. Her husband Frank displayed a thank-you cake that had just arrived at their door. 4. Kudos to the Clean Heat Team. Members of the Clean Heat Team, including Cindy, Archana, Ricki, Marcia and others, were congratulated for shepherding Article 29 successfully through Town Meeting the evening before. 4. Articles 44. Todd asked if the committee was prepared to endorse the article. Joe explained that Select Board members have not yet taken a position on Article 44; concern has been expressed by some in the business community, particularly in the central business district, about some of the provisions. While noting that the Sustainable Lexington Committee is a Select Board advisory committee, Ricki asked if it would be appropriate for the committee on some matters to also report its opinion to Town Meeting as well,just as the Appropriations and Capital Expenditures Committee do. After some discussion, it was agreed that the committee would endorse those aspects of Article 44 related to sustainability, and the following statement was adopted unanimously: 1. Sustainable Lexington Committee Minutes of March 23, 2021 Sustainable Lexington Committee position on Article 44: The Sustainable Lexington Committee endorses the elements of Article 44, including but not limited to EV charging and readiness and standards for site plan review, that are intended to advance sustainability as a guiding principle for future development in Lexington, but has not taken a position on elements outside of sustainability, which is our area of responsibility. 5. Article 45. Cindy expressed disappointment that the Planning Board did not adopt two of the committee's priorities that had been endorsed by Boston Properties: LEED Gold (with qualifications) and the 15Btu/sgft/hr hybrid language for buildings over 65 feet. Others echoed those sentiments. A long discussion followed that focused on whether to support an amendment to Article 45 on the floor of Town Meeting when the article is presented on March 31; whether to propose an amendment in the fall; and if an amendment is not adopted now, whether to support the adoption of 45, oppose it, or ask that it be referred back to the Planning Board for further study. The committee learned at the meeting that the Attorney General's office has approved Article 16 (adopted in the fall) without comment. Many considerations were weighed regarding the pros and cons of each option. The committee concluded that it would support an amendment, but only one focused on the hybrid heating provision (15 Btu/sgft/hr) and not to also seek LEED Gold. Cindy's offer to present the amendment was met with approval. A motion to adopt the following statement was unanimously approved: Sustainable Lexington Committee position on Article 45: With regard to Article 45, the Sustainable Lexington Committee desired improvement over the high-performance building elements of Article 16. While we endorse the elements of Article 45 that promote economic development, sustainable site design, and potential for the use of sustainability checklists, we believe there was a lost opportunity to more effectively leverage the range of zoning incentives to achieve in the commercial sector the same requirements established in the Town's own building policy. Achieving high-performance buildings in both the commercial and municipal sectors are essential for the Town to meet its net-zero emissions targets. Hartwell Avenue represents the key opportunity for the Town to significantly impact commercial sector building standards. Overall, Article 45 is an improvement over Article 16 and, therefore, we support its passing with the following amendment that is required to meet the Commonwealth's and Town's emission targets. 2. Sustainable Lexington Committee Minutes of March 23, 2021 a. The Committee recommends the existing language in section 1 Building Height, subsection d (i.e., `Buildings utilizing on-site combustion for HVAC system operation are limited to six stories.") be changed to: d) Buildings over 65 feet shall utilize an all-electric HVAC system or utilize an HVAC system using electric heat pumps as the primary heating system with a minimum electric heat pump heating capacity of 15 Btu/hour per gross square foot or equal to the design heating load, whichever is lower. Heating capacity above the 15 Btu/hour per gross square foot is not restricted to electric heat pumps. For buildings with electric heat pumps and other heating sources, the building systems shall be configured, and the controls shall be programmed such that normal operation prioritizes reliance on the electric heat pumps to serve all building heating loads, before using other heating systems to supplement. Systems not related to building heating, such as emergency backup power generators, humidification, and process equipment are excluded from these requirements. b. If the amendment is not supported, we recommend that the article be referred back to the Planning Board so that it can be brought back to Town Meeting in the fall. 6. Next Meeting. It being late, other business on the agenda was postponed, but with the understanding that a special meeting of the committee would be called soon to address other items, the Community Solar matter in particular. The meeting was adjourned at 10:55 pm. Respectfully submitted, Charlie Wyman 3.