Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
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188 Amesbury Mayor Ken Gray looks to renewable energy as a means of generating power and revenue. Mayor Ken Gray considers himself a pragmatist. Elected in November 2013, the former engineer gov- erns Amesbury with a problem- solver's good sense. First on his list of objectives upon entering office was getting the city's prop- erty tax rate under control—it's the fourth highest in Massachu- setts. Knowing property values had not risen in Amesbury as they had in other areas of the state, he adopted a two-pronged approach to change that. For the past 18 months, Gray has worked to bring in revenue from sources outside the city and encourage economic development within. He has also looked for innovative ways to lower costs, latching onto the idea of renewable energy as a means toward that end. "I felt there was a real opportunity for us in the energy area for a lot of reasons," says the mayor. "Focusing on ener- gy, and specifically solar, allowed us to generate revenue, take advantage of a number of state and federal incentives, and reduce our energy costs, which, in turn, lowers our impact on the environment. It was a positive from so many aspects." impact on the environment." Always the pragmatist, Gray also looks at the situation from another point of view. "The high value of the arrays upon installation depreciates over time—and that's a burden for a developer," he says. "The city has flattened out the pay- ments, [which] gives solar develop- ers incentive to come to Amesbury." It's true Amesbury is moving toward becoming home to one of the largest solar developments in the Northeast. But it's been a process—one that began with small steps, the first of which was hiring an energy manager to help improve the city's energy profile. Partially funded by grant money, they purchased an electric car that they use to drive around reading water meters. They even built a charging site, which Gray says, "draws people in from other com- munities. While they charge their cars, they shop downtown—it's a win-win." Furthermore, all of downtown is equipped with LED lighting fixtures. "We learned a lot [from the energy manager] about how to focus on renewable, clean energy and alternatives." Those initial efforts led to a second grant awarded in July 2015. (It will be used to improve energy efficiency in the middle school, with a projected $51,000 per year in cost savings.) Another of the mayor's under- takings started even before he Gray put forth a plan to develop solar fields at two different sites in the city, both occupied by capped landfills. "They really aren't good for anything else," he says, noting that the state and federal govern- ments support repurposing such sites. Working with solar developer Citizens Energy Corporation, the city is in the process of building a six-megawatt array on a privately managed landfill. By employing a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) program, Gray notes, "We would derive revenue akin to an excise tax." Planning for $10 million in solar arrays, he anticipates the site will be not only a source of revenue but also one of power for Ames- bury's 16,500 residents. "At the end of the day, that is what we are try- ing to achieve." SunEdison is heading the project on the second site, city-owned Titcomb landfill, where they will build a 3.7-megawatt facility. The mayor expects the city will derive two-thirds of the municipal energy at cost of volume. "The energy we use as a city will [come] from this landfill," he explains. "That's a tre- mendous cost savings and positive by Kiley Jacques photograph by Rachael Kloss T H E E N V I R O N M E N T A L I S T Mayor Ken Gray WHAT ARE YOU READI NG? IN THE HEART OF THE SEA is about the whaling ship Essex, which was built in Amesbury. The story of its demise became the basis for Herman Melville's Moby Dick. MOVERS SHAKERS &