Columbus – Village Manager Pam Lucas and the Montpelier Electric System were honored for achievements during the past year at the 2014 AMP/OMEA Annual Conference.
Lucas was the recipient of the prestigious AMP 7 Hats Award, recognizing her outstanding accomplishments in utility management and service to her community and public power. Lucas has spent her entire career in public power, including with the City of Bowling Green, 14 years with the City of Bryan and now with Montpelier. She started with the village in 2002 as the supervisor of administrative services and then was named village manager in December 2004. She is a tireless advocate of public power, active with AMP, OMEA and APPA. She has served on the AMP Board since taking over as village manager and currently serves as Board Secretary and chair of both the Nominating and Personnel committees. Pam’s knowledge and experience are recognized by her colleagues and beneficial to the organization. Montpelier Mayor Steve Yagelski was enthusiastic in his endorsement of Pam’s nomination, recognizing her commitment to the village, and the active role she plays in the community.
Initiated in 1966 to recognize utility managers who serve smaller communities, the 7 Hats Award is given annually in communities of less than 2,500 electric meters. Award winners show skill in seven areas: planning and design, administration, public relations, field supervision, accounting, personnel or employee direction, and community leadership.
Lucas was also re-elected Secretary of the AMP Board of Trustees, one of four officer positions on the Board. In addition, she was re-elected chair of the Ohio Municipal Electric Generation Agency (OMEGA) JV4 Board of Participants, Chair of the Municipal Energy Services Agency (MESA), Vice Chair of the OMEGA JV6 Board of Participants and Secretary/Treasurer of the OMEGA JV2 Board of Participants. OMEGA JV2 Board oversees operation of gas-fired distributed generation units located throughout the state; the OMEGA JV4 Board oversees operation of the transmission line connecting Williams County public power communities; the OMEGA JV6 Board oversees operation of the AMP Wind Farm, located in Wood County, Ohio; and MESA provides technical assistance to participating AMP member communities.
Montpelier Municipal Electric System received an AMP System Improvement Honorable Mention for the LED lights and cameras project. The project involved the installation of LED flashing and traffic lights and cameras at several intersections in the village.
Montpelier’s commitment to safety was recognized with an AMP Safety Award for no time loss due to a reportable accident in the transmission/distribution system.
The annual American Municipal Power/Ohio Municipal Electric Association conference was held in Columbus October 27-30 and was attended by nearly 425 municipal officials and industry representatives, with speakers from various national organizations.