No Special Town Meeting in December

Voters will not be attending a Special Town Meeting in December after all.

A Special Town Meeting had been considered to vote on an energy proposal from Honeywell. This plan would upgrade the town’s buildings to make them more energy-efficient.

But selectmen said last night that there is not enough time to explain the issue to voters. Concerns were also raised about the potential repercussions of having two voters in December.

Voters are scheduled to go to the polls Dec. 13 to vote on whether to approve a expansion. The issue was approved by two votes at last month’s Town Meeting.

Having two votes in one month, some said, could lead to both getting turned down.

The 20-year Honeywell project would save the town more than $250,000 a year in energy costs.

The total cost of the project would be slightly more than $7 million.

The cost to taxpayers would be $216,000 a year over 20 years. This figure factors in the annual estimated savings of $256,595.

Town Administrator Timothy McInerney said the issue could be pushed out until at least January.

Questions were also raised about spending $3 million on the current Municipal Center to install a new heating system and perform other upgrades to make the building energy-efficient.

“We have to gauge whether the community has the stomach to put $3 million into this building,’’ selectman Brook Padgett said.

Padgett asked whether the municipal center could forego the new heating system.

Selectman John Carlson disagreed. “If you’re going to put a nickel into this building, you have to have a heating system’’ installed, he said.

Selectman chairman Peter Adams also wondered whether it would make sense to spend so much on upgrades or whether a new building should be considered.

The Finance Committee chairman questioned whether all the energy work would result in the predicted $250,000 annual savings and wanted to study that further.

Getting to that figure, David Libbey said, is a “tough nut to crack.’’