At Thursday’s Board of Selectmen Fred Camill0 announced a forum featuring representatives from utility companies will take place on Sept 1 at 6:00 pm in the Town Hall Meeting Room.
Eversource, CNG and Aquarion all plan to participate.
“Why did I ask them to come here? A few months ago I was informed by some neighbors that after they completed the total renovations of their house, they were told by the gas company that they couldn’t get the service they expected because the house is now a lot bigger,” Camillo said.
“They were the first of many that have reached out. Even some renovations – people have reached out and they’re very upset.”
Camillo said the purpose of the forum is to inform residents not only why that happened, but to remind them that when they go to renovate or build anew, they need to touch base with utility companies first.
“You can still do it, but it’s a little more costly now depending on the scope of the project,” he added. “I didn’t want people to be caught unaware of this after the fact, because when you build a budget and you’re told after the fact that you got to do a, b and c and it’s going to cost you another $10,000, $20,000 or $30,000, that hurts.”
Camillo said he talked to CNG who said the issue impacted towns “all over” but no other towns have held a forum.
In a July Civic Alert, Camillo called on the State of Connecticut to place an immediate moratorium on zoning mandates for all municipalities.
“The burdensome housing mandates that have been placed throughout the State of Connecticut have now taxed our infrastructure to the point that we can no longer keep up,” First Selectman Camillo said in the alert.
On August 14, State Representatives Hector Arzeno and Steve Meskers included information on the CNG situation in their newsletters as follows:
Greenwich Natural Gas Service Updates
System Conditions & Reliability
- Recent engineering reviews show that some large new service requests could affect long‑term reliability for existing customers if additional infrastructure is not built.
- Maintaining reliable service for current customers is the top priority.
Why This Is Happening
- The Greenwich gas distribution system has evolved over decades to serve existing customers and expected growth. While CNG has continually invested in the system, recent growth has occurred at a faster pace than historical trends.
- Utilities must ensure that new load additions do not compromise reliability for customers already connected to the system.
Not Unique to Greenwich
- Utilities throughout the Northeast are facing similar challenges associated with aging infrastructure, evolving energy policies, and changing customer demand patterns.
- Evaluating system capacity and planning upgrades is a standard industry practice.
- Greenwich remains a priority area for future system investments.
Impact on New Service Requests
- Some large new or expanded service requests may require significant infrastructure upgrades before they can be safely accommodated.
- Existing customer commitments with signed service agreements will be honored.
- New requests undergo a comprehensive engineering evaluation to determine what infrastructure is needed to serve the load reliably.
What CNG Is Doing
- CNG has already begun planning system reinforcement projects to improve reliability and support future growth in Greenwich.
- Engineering work is underway to identify the most effective infrastructure solutions.
- Improvements will be implemented in phases, addressing both near‑term reliability needs and long‑term community growth.
Why Investment Matters
- Prudent capital investment is essential to meeting future energy needs.
- Infrastructure upgrades strengthen reliability, support economic development, and ensure customers continue receiving safe, dependable natural gas service.