Energy Management

The Department of Public Facilities (DPF) manages energy consumption and environmental conditions (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) for 23 public buildings. This includes all school buildings, Town Office Building, Cary Memorial Building, Police Station, Fire Headquarters, and Cary Memorial Library.

The DPF and the Energy Conservation Committee (ECC) jointly drafted Town of Lexington Energy Use Guidelines, which were approved by the Board of Selectmen (now the Select Board) and School Committee, in November of 2007. These Energy Guidelines (PDF) established common environmental parameters for public buildings. These guidelines are used to manage operation of the environmental systems and maintain conditions as established in the guidelines.

In Fiscal Year 2009, the town's public buildings consumed 8.6 Megawatt hours of electricity, 527,000 therms of natural gas, and 160,000 gallons of fuel oil. These utilities were delivered at a cost of approximately $3.25M.

In recognizing that utility costs for the town are significant, the DPF and ECC jointly crafted a goal for the town to reduce energy consumption in all public buildings 20% over a five year period. This goal was approved by the Board and the School Committee as The Lexington Energy Challenge (PDF).