LISBON — Public Works Director Ryan Leighton told the Town Council on Wednesday night that $52,306 has been saved in energy costs at Lisbon schools and the Central Office.
Improvements at the building were done by Siemens, and the savings cover the period from December 2015 to November 2016.
Under the contract, Siemens must verify savings each year.
Leighton met with a Siemens representative Jan. 18 to review the energy audit. He said the town expects to save $41,892 next year and the savings will continue for 12 years.
In other business, the council voted 6-0 to authorize Tracey Steuber, economic and community development director, and Olver Associates to solicit bids for the downtown Falls Streetscape Project.
Olver Associates, an engineering company based in Winterport, has been working with the Lisbon Development Committee since November 2014. The town was awarded a Community Development Block Grant of $320,000 in October 2016 for the project.
“It’s time to start doing the work,” Steuber said.
The council also authorized Steuber to solicit bids for town branding and website design.
“Within the branding, (Lisbon) is looking at a tag line, something that you see and you know that it’s (the Lisbon) community,” Steuber said. “This is a good time to have us not be so much in the middle of the L-A area or the Topsham-Brunswick area, but to have Lisbon stand on its own.”
There is $10,000 set aside in the budget for branding, but Councilors Allen Ward and Dale Crafts were concerned that companies would request more than that.
“I have no issue with the bid process,” Ward said. “My issue would be the bids coming in (at) $25,000 and now we’re looking for $15,000.”
Members also voted 6-0 to accept Lisbon Community Garden Committee as an ad hoc committee under the Recreation Committee. Councilors will not appoint members for the Lisbon Community Garden Committee. Anyone may be a member, Town Manager Diane Barnes said.
The Lisbon Community Garden program educates members on healthy living by hands-on preparation and outreach programs. Through the Community Garden, members can rent 10- by 4-foot raised beds for $30 a year. Residents who wish to buy a raised bed must sign up by April 15.
In other business, the council:
• Voted 6-0 to authorize Police Chief Marc Hagan to apply for the Maine Bureau of Highway Safety 2017 Speed Enforcement and Equipment Grant and to accept the funds, if awarded.
• Approved spending $4,593 to complete equipping the Police Department’s new 2017 Ford Explorer. The SUV cost $37,593, but the lease-to-purchase agreement was not to exceed $33,000. The extra expense is to replace equipment from the old cruiser that would not fit in the Explorer.
• Appointed Heather Duley of Lisbon Falls to the Lisbon Recreation Committee.
• Appointed members of the Route 196 Master Plan Committee to the Lisbon Development Committee, with the addition of Cheryl Haggerty and Eric Metivier.
• Postponed the dispatch consolidation discussion until Feb. 21, because Councilor Norman Albert was absent Wednesday.
After returning from an executive session, the council set a public hearing for Feb. 21 to amend and restate the Kelly Park tax-increment financing agreement.
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