Emerald People's Utility District, commonly known as EPUD, is one of the newest utility companies in Oregon. Oregon Business Magazine came out with their list of the "Top 100 Companies to Work for in Oregon" and Emerald was number one this year. For the past five years they have been in the top ten. Emerald has a unique touch to their company because of how the company stated. They went into business in 1983, after the countless meetings, thousands of dollars, and thousands of hours spent by many dedicated volunteers to make the public. It is now one of the smallest public electric utility company's in the state. They have 75 employees, 20 who are the original employees. Few people leave EPUD because it is such a great business to work for. Jennifer Grant, Emerald's Human Resources Coordinator, is one of the people who has been with Emerald since the beginning. In fact, she hired the people who first started with EPUD. Emerald People Utility District is one of the best companies to work for and has been advancing through the years.
History
The journey that a small group of citizens went through to establish a public-owned utility district was a laborious and lengthy process. In October, 1970, a small group of citizens met at the Elmira Grange Hall to discuss the rates that their power company, Pacific Power and Light, were charging, approximately twice as much as the surrounding ratepayers in Lane County, who was served by publicly-owned utilities. The question of forming a People's Utility District was raised. Five months later a group of 50 people met at Harris Hall to hear Carl Remple of the State Engineer's Office outline the requirements for forming a PUD. The committee consisted of people from Cottage Grove, Junction City, Goshen, and Pleasant Hill. Their journey was just now beginning with much of work ahead of them. They had supporters such as the State Grange and its local chapters throughout rural Oregon that supported the cause. The biggest problem facing the committee was the forming the boundary descriptions of the area to be served. They got legal help and had to have continuous drives for money and for workers. In 1973, the State Engineer's Office approved the boundary descriptions and made schedules for some hearings throughout the district. The State Engineer's Office made a report that noted that the decision about forming a PUD would be made by the voters and was a "non-decision.
In 1974, the committee petitioned to put the question on the ballot. The major issue that was in question was the availability of power for a public utility district. Bonneville Power Administration would not guarantee a steady supply of power for a new customer; consequently, the voters defeated the measure. The committee went back to get the proposal passed by District voters at the next possible election in 1976. By this time Pacific Power had spent $100,000 to defeat the measure, compared to about $1,500 spent by the PUD supporters. An attempt to get a formation election on the ballot in 1976 was aborted due to a technical and logistical problem with Oregon election law. In 1978, when the lack of energy, as well as its costs and controls, had generated the public's attention, it was then that the voters approved the formation of Emerald People's Utility District. In 1979, voters approved $150,000 for engineering studies and legal expenses in a levy election. In 1981, voters agreed to a $72.5 million in revenue bonds. In 1982, the Supreme Court sustained the legality of the bond election. That meant Emerald was ready to begin with Pacific's distribution system in Lane County. Over a three-year period Emerald had been in trials with Pacific Power and Light about 14 different times. In late 1982, Emerald sold $23.5 million in revenue bonds, got their first General Manager, started to get a fleet of trucks and prepared an office for business. On July 27, 1983, after almost thirteen years of effort and six months of negotiations, Pacific Power and Light finally agreed to sell its facilities to Emerald for $25.5 million. The "switchover" occurred on November 17, 1983, with its long time supporters there, along with new employees, media, and the people. The success of Emerald PUD was and still is based on the people
Jennifer Grant started as a volunteer and wrote newsletters during the whole process of becoming a PUD. She was there for it all; in fact, she was hired as a Human Resources Coordinator in August, 1983. Then she began interviewing people and hiring them, pretty much doing anything they needed. They leased the old Wildish Sand and Gravel building and were in progress of buying accounts. They only had two telephones in the whole business. It was a really hard process, working several months at seven days a week until nine p.m., but with a good spirit. It was a success.
No longer working in a run-down old building, they have made a success once more. They now have an award winning building that is energy-efficient. It is filled with innovative designs that keep the people in the building comfortable while using less energy than a typical office building. It is one of the most energy-efficient buildings in the country because of their building design and energy patterns. The difference between Emerald and most other buildings is that Emerald uses mostly daylighting instead of so many electric lights. This not only reduces the energy used for electric lighting, but also the energy that would be needed to cool the building due to the heat by the electric lights. The windows are shaped in a "T." The stem of the "T" is for viewing out and letting light into the interior of the building. The top of the "T" lets daylight in near the white ceiling, where it can penetrate into the building's interior. The electric lights that are used in the building are energy-efficient. Emerald's award winning building was published in the Architectural Lighting Magazine. They made an insert explaining the wonderful and unique things about Emerald's building. (Architectural Lighting Magazine.)
The community involvement that Emerald has is outstanding. They believe it is their responsibility to help the streams, rivers, and other natural resources around them while they work. Their efforts have not gone unnoticed; they have received local, statewide, and national recognition and awards for their environment-enhancing projects, such as their award from the Association of Northwest Steelheaders for their leadership in obtaining support for fish enhancement projects. They also received awards from the Eugene Rotary Club Environment Committee for locally effective environmental action at their Short Mountain Gas Generation facility, the Federal Government National Renew America Award for Environmental Sustainability at Short Mountain. The Northwest Conservation Act Coalition gave them the award for the 1996 Headwaters Award for efforts in behalf of clean and healthy waterways. They also help out with community festivals and fairs by providing a float to display their group or sometimes having hot chocolate and donuts for participants at such events. Employees volunteer for all kinds of activities in support of these events. They offer the use of their combination lunch/meeting room, complete with fully equipped kitchen, for public use at no cost. It has served for weddings, family reunions, and even a wake. They provide an opportunity for kids' groups in their district to earn money for their group by washing their utility trucks. Every Saturday they bring out the materials and supplies needed to wash the vehicles. In return, they donate $125 to their group.
Emerald does donate to groups and they also try to save their customers money. They have a Water Heater Program which offers a $30 incentive to get the to purchase and install a new or replaced energy-efficient water heater. The water heater is the second most used energy in the homes. By installing the water heater a customer can save up to 10-15% on water heating costs each month. The Emerald Energy Services will pay the customer a cash incentive to purchase a qualifying energy-efficient refrigerator, dishwasher, or washer for a home. Another program that they offer is the Shower Head Program is a showerhead or faucet aerators to customers who heat their water with electricity. Showerheads help save electricity by saving hot water.
Emerald People's Utilitiy District
Webpage designed by Tami Boden
Thurston High School
May 22, 2000
Full project available at Springfield Museum
590 Main Street
Springfield, OR 97477
Emerald's Building
Energy Efficient Programs