Plans for a new, 16-unit residential development on Roth Street in north Madison are facing a significant setback related to utilities, according to Isthmus. Local nonprofit Housing Initiatives, which provides affordable housing for individuals with mental health challenges, said that Madison Gas and Electric (MGE) denied its request for a unified electric meter, a key cost-saving measure for the project.
The Public Service Commission (PSC) requires that residential properties built or renovated after 1980 have electrical meters installed for each unit in a building, with a few exceptions that include “transient multi-dwelling buildings” like hotels, nursing homes, college dormitories, community-based residential facilities and residential care apartment complexes. Developers may seek an exemption from their utility and, if that is denied, seek a waiver from the PSC.
Housing Initiatives asserts that its building, which includes supportive services for tenants facing barriers to stable housing, meets exemption criteria for “community-based residential facilities and residential care complexes or similar facilities.” Its plans also rely on solar energy to partially power the development, which is much more feasible if an array is plugged into a single meter.
If the organization were to install meters for each unit in the new facility it would need to pay for installation and an additional $224 per month for MGE’s grid connection charge, as Housing Initiatives covers all tenant utility costs.
MGE said it “does not have control over the issue” and maintained that the authority to grant a waiver rests with the PSC.
The company also made the following statement:
“MGE, like all Wisconsin utilities, is required to follow PSC 113.0803.
“In this code, it does say that if a property is transient housing, the code does not require an individual meter. The code has a very narrow classification of what qualifies as transient housing.
“For us to grant an exemption, MGE requests to have, in writing, a detailed explanation showing that a proposed property qualifies as transient housing as described in the code. If that explanation does not meet the code’s classification of transient housing, for example, if it includes permanent housing, the property would not be eligible for a single meter under the code.
“The developer/owner then has the right to file a waiver request with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin.”
Editor’s note: The original story has been expanded to include the statement above and reflect the perspective of MGE.
