HARDWICK – General Manager Sarah Braese attended her first meeting of the Hardwick Electric Department (HED) Board of Commissioners, January 21, after joining the organization just two weeks earlier, on January 6.
Beginning her report, Braese said she was glad to join HED and be at the meeting.
She said facility renovations continue, with bathroom fixtures due to be installed this week. Flooring continues being installed, she said, and staff is looking forward to being able to use the new space.
Controller and Business Office Supervisor Beth Essary said an engineering proposal has been received for the Wolcott dam sluice gate and the contract will be signed.
Braese and Essary reported a penstock repair engineering report on damages is underway and expected later this month. Wolcott dam repair work will require Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation approval because it is in the floodplain.
Board of Commissioners Chair Lynne Gedanken asked about an analysis discussed at earlier meetings to examine whether work on the generator makes economic sense. Others advised her the damage reports must be completed before that analysis can be done. The analysis will be based on the damage reports, the cost of repairs and expectations of FEMA reimbursement.
Gedanken said she wanted to be sure there’s no work being done or approved now that might depend on the analysis and was assured that it isn’t.
The department’s integrated resource plan (IRP) is due this year. The IRP is a document outlining a utility’s plan for generating electricity over the next 20 years and must be updated every three years. Braese said she expects necessary information from an engineering firm in roughly six months, with a report in November. An extension will likely be needed, which can be worked on by the Vermont Public Power Supply Authority (VPPSA) in February.
The 2025 financial report and draft budget for 2026 were reviewed, with no action taken.
Commissioner Renaud Demers and Hardwick Select Board Chair Eric Remick reported on a state feasibility study being conducted about the potential removal of Jackson Dam that is now holding back Hardwick Lake.
The study is looking at the effects of removing the dam and how it would affect Hardwick Lake and the village upstream and downstream of the dam. Remick says the work and cost is being covered by the state. They are looking at flood impacts and wildlife impacts. Remick mentioned the lake is sometimes almost dry, which will likely affect the analysis.
Gedanken asked Demers, who is representing HED at state meetings about the feasibility study to represent HED, not to make any statements on behalf of the board about what they might or might not do based on results of the study. She said she wants the board to have the chance to deliberate and have discussions with the town before suggesting what options might be acceptable.
The meeting ended with executive sessions to discuss a customer matter and a litigation matter. which attorney Liam Murphy joined. Commissioners agreed to retain the services of Murphy following the executive session he joined.
Following the meeting Braese shared her priorities for HED. In addition to the business of keeping the lights on, she said she’s looking at developing key partnerships and helping support the towns where HED operates. She’s begun working with staff on a social media presence and updating the website to include profiles of HED employees.
One HED partnership will likely be working with the Hardwick Downtown Partnership, with which she said she’s already had discussions.
Braese said challenges with setting up a payment processing application have stalled plans to place the electric vehicle (EV) charging station outside HED’s into service. There’s work to be done now having a broader conversation with others in town about where EV charging stations might be most valuable as there’s already limited parking at the HED office.
She suggested work on the Wolcott dam to mitigate future damage from flooding events similar to those seen in the last several years, will add to the cost beyond simply repairing the damaged generator.
Braese was optimistic about opportunities to increase local resilience in the face of outages now that HED has established a connection between their two substations in Hardwick and Woodbury. She mentioned the possibility of creating a microgrid, which could allow HED to operate independently of outside connections under some circumstances in which only the dam is supplying power to the utility.
Braese said she looks forward to working with the utility and rebuilding community trust throughout the HED service area.
Paul Fixx is editor of The Hardwick Gazette and lives in Hardwick.