Like many things in life, my first exposure to the idea of committees came from George Lucas. 

“No time to discuss this in a committee!” Han Solo barks at Princess Leia in the midst of a daring escape in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. And while I’ve acquired a more nuanced view since then, Captain Solo did get one thing right: committees discuss. That’s their strength. They explore, they consider and they plan. (Those plans also rarely result in someone being frozen in carbonite and sold to Jabba the Hutt – ahem, Captain?)

 That’s why Longmont makes good use of its boards and commissions – and is about to add  a new one. One that we’d like to get a couple of community volunteers for.

This newcomer is called the Building Electrification Feasibility Committee. It’s a temporary body, meeting over the next two years. Its mission, should it choose to accept it (sorry, Mr. Phelps), is to help guide efforts to reduce the fossil fuel use of Longmont’ homes and businesses, while keeping costs and energy use low.

Challenging? Sure. And that’s why we want an array of voices to deal with it. In addition to some specifically designated members – key sector stakeholders, city staff, a pair of City Council liaisons – we also want to have two at large volunteers, applicants from anywhere in the community  who have an interest in the subject and a willingness to sort through a complicated topic

If that’s you, check out our Engage Longmont page on beneficial building electrification. There, you’ll find more details and – starting May 1 – a link to the application, which will be open through May 15.

We’d love to see you aboard. This is an adventure, one we’ll all be taking together.

It certainly isn’t a Solo effort.