Apr. 28--The Danville Utility Commission reviewed a report comparing utility costs in Danville to other Virginia cities, learning that Danville's rates are comparable individually and favorable overall.

Joe King, assistant city manager for Utilities, presented graphs that show Danville's electric rates fall in the mid-range with Martinsville and Bedford -- Danville and Martinsville came in just shy of $100 per 1,000 kilowatt hours, and Bedford at about $85 -- and are lower than Virginia Electric & Power Co. (about $110), CPL Retail Energy LP (about $112) and Mecklenburg (about $121).

Natural gas prices in Danville are the lowest available, King said, slightly more than $100 per 100 therms. Its closest competitors in the state -- Southwest Gas, Columbia Gas and Richmond -- charge about $140 for the same amount of gas.

Charlottesville came in highest on gas, at about $240 for the same number of therms.

Danville and Lynchburg charge about $25 for 1,000 cubic feet of water, with Martinsville and Roanoke only slightly higher, King said. Richmond is at about $33, and Charlottesville surpasses them all with summer rates of more than $50 for the same amount of water.

King also said that despite recent wastewater rate increases, Danville's rate of about $39 per 1,000 cubic feet is toward the low end of charges in the region, with only Martinsville and Roanoke charging less than $30.

Charlottesville's summer rate is slightly more than $40, Richmond is almost $50, and Lynchburg is more than $50.

Overall, King said, Danville's combined utility cost is low, compared to the rest of the region.

He said if a Danville resident received a bill for $265.30 for combined electricity, water, wastewater and gas, the same amount of utilities would cost $285.52 in Roanoke, $287.03 in Martinsville, $303.36 in Lynchburg, $327.91 in Richmond and $409.49 in Charlottesville.

King said that despite being comparatively low, the cost of energy in Danville is still a huge concern for many of its citizens, and he recommends continuing to keep costs as low as possible while teaching customers how to conserve energy.

He told the commission that the $202,200 energy grant the city is getting from stimulus funds would best be used upgrading some of the older rental properties in the city through a pilot program the city is launching.

Landlords of older homes would have their properties upgraded for energy efficiency if they share the cost with the city 50-50, a situation King said would attract better tenants while providing those tenants with lower utility costs.

He also said some of the stimulus funds could be used to upgrade some streetlights to LEDs, and solar panels could be installed on one of the city's buildings to demonstrate how much solar power could reduce power bills.

The commission will see a formal plan for using the stimulus funds at the May 11 meeting, and Danville City Council will have to approve the plans before they can be initiated.

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