Tuesday, April 17, 2012
The council voted to select Direct Energy as its residential electricity supplier with a two-year contract that promises a rate of 4.54 cents per kilowatt-hour.
Darien residents who opt in to the city’s electrical aggregation program could find their electric bills slashed by roughly 35 percent once the new rates take effect. City Council voted Monday to accept a bid from Pittsburgh-based Direct Energy that charges residents and small business owners 4.54 cents per kilowatt-hour. The average resident will see a $260 annual savings over the term of the contract, said Assistant City Administrator Scott Coren. According to the Department of Energy, the average U.S. home uses 958 kilowatt-hours of electricity each month. ComEd—Darien’s current supplier—charges 7.73 cents per kilowatt-hour, though it will set a new 12-month rate in June. The new rate won’t likely fall below 7 cents, said Northern …
Monday, April 2, 2012
City Council is scheduled to hold public hearings on the city's 2013 budget and its electrical aggregation plan of governance.
Have something to say about the fiscal year 2013 budget? How about electrical aggregation? It's your last chance. City Council is scheduled to hold two public hearings Monday night — one for the budget and one for the aggregation plan of governance (i.e. the process of adopting electrical aggregation). The hearings are set to begin at 7 p.m. at City Hall. To review a copy of the budget, click here. To read the electrical aggregation plan of governance, click here. Both items appear under the new items section on the agenda for Monday's City Council meeting. The meeting will follow the hearings at 7:30 p.m. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the council will vote to adopt both items at that meeting.
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Tuesday, March 27, 2012
The city on Monday held its first of two public hearings on how electrical aggregation will work.
A little less than a week after Darien residents voted yes to allow the city to negotiate bulk electric rates on their behalf, City Council on Monday held the first of two public hearings on the topic. NIMEC Director David Hoover took questions from aldermen about how the practice of electrical aggregation will work, but no residents outside the elected officials participated in the hearing. One revelation that surprised some members of the council: In terms of business customers, the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) recently ruled that only small businesses that use 15,000 kilowatt hours or fewer of electricity per year can aggregate with residential customers. Hoover said such a business would be roughly the size of a dry cleaner. (…
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Thursday, March 22, 2012
The city will hold two hearings over the next couple of weeks to kick off the bid process for lower electric rates.
Now that the electrical aggregation referendum has passed, Darien officials plan to act quickly to secure electric rates, Assistant City Administrator Scott Coren said Wednesday. The city will hold the first of two public hearings about the process at 6 p.m. Monday in City Hall. The second hearing will take place at 7 p.m. April 2 prior to that evening’s City Council meeting. If everything goes as planned, City Council will vote on a plan as well as an ordinance accepting the referendum at the April 2 meeting. The city hopes to be able to go out to bid shortly after that, Coren said. “The faster we move it, the sooner residents will start saving money, so we’re trying to put it on the fast track,” he said. The referendum passed Tuesday …
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
It was a heck of a night in the southwest suburbs. Catch up on all your local election news in one place.
Presidential Primary Patch Live Blog: Election Results Roll In Mitt Romney Visits Wheaton Home on Primary Night 6th Congressional District Coolidge Wins Democratic Nomination in 6th District 6th Congressional District Election Results: Coolidge Leads with 53 Percent of Vote 11th Congressional District Foster Handily Wins 11th District Nomination UPDATED: Primary Election Results: 11th Congressional District Illinois House 81st District Sandack: 81st House Race 'Way Closer' than Expected Illinois House 82nd District Durkin Takes Landslide Victory in 82nd District Results: Durkin Wins Illinois House 82nd District Electrical Aggregation Darien Electrical Aggregation Referendum Passes Election Day Big Ballots, Precinct Mix-Ups Among Darien’s …
Monday, March 19, 2012
Darien voters will be asked on Tuesday to decide whether the city should look for cheaper electricity suppliers. Here are a few points about what this means.
In 2009, Illinois government passed a law that would allow municipalities to put electricity supplying out for bids to find a competitive rate, so long as the residents were in favor of doing so through a referendum vote. On Tuesday, the following question will appear on the March 2012 Primary ballot for Darien residents. “Shall the City of Darien have the Authority to arrange for the supply of electricity for its residential and small commercial retail customers who have not opted out of such program?” With that in mind, here are questions and answers brought up during a session about electricity aggregation with a representative from the Northern Illinois Municipal Electric Collaborative. Do electricity suppliers actually manage …
Monday, February 6, 2012
City, store and real estate officials plan to meet Wednesday, City Administrator Bryon Vana tells a town hall meeting that also included questions on police staffing, electrical aggregation and water rates.
Plans to develop a Walmart Super Center in Darien have been progressing slowly to this point, but City Administrator Bryon Vana told a town hall meeting Thursday that those plans may be about to get a major push forward. Vana told 10 residents attending a meeting hosted by Sixth Ward Alderman Sylvia McIvor that company and city officials will meet Wednesday with representatives of Inland Real Estate to try to finalize an agreement to move ahead with the expansion of the store on 75th Street. “Walmart is in their due diligence period,” Vana said. “I think they’re looking at construction costs now and getting those final numbers and estimates underway. … They’re putting the pencil to the paper; they’re getting better estimates.” Vana said …
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
The council will decide at its next meeting if the matter should be placed on the ballot for the March primary election
The Darien City Council Monday night for the second time in recent months discussed the possibility of again giving voters in the community the opportunity to decide if they want the city to participate in an electrical aggregation program that could bring reduced rates for electricity to residents. Darien residents voted against the idea in April. During a working session prior to the start of their regular meeting at City Hall Monday night, council members discussed the reasons for the no vote. Ward Three Alderman John Poteraske said most of the people who voted against the ballot initiative did so because “they didn’t trust the council.” Ward Six Alderman Sylvia McIvor speculated that residents did not have enough information to make an…
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Lauren Williamson
9:56 am on Tuesday, March 27, 2012
You're welcome, Don. It was my pleasure to attend. Best, Lauren more ›