Better utility rates from municipals
November 18, 2007
Steve Bailey's column had me look at recent electric bills for my two ice cream stores. ("Unkept power promises," Nov. 9)
I have owned a store in Belmont for 20 years, serviced by Belmont Electric, a municipal utility. Three years ago, I opened a store in Lexington Center, serviced by NStar. Monthly bills in Belmont were $813.59, or 11 cents per kilowatt-hour, and in Lexington $2,294.20, or 19.3 cents per kilowatt-hour. NStar charges 75 percent more than Belmont Electric!
The largest new business to come to Massachusetts recently, Bristol-Myers Squibb, chose Devens, whose municipal utility offers low electric rates. To make our state more attractive for businesses, the Legislature should adopt Rep. Kaufman's proposal.
Joe Rancatore Jr.
President, Rancatore's Ice Cream Lexington