As reported on the website of the San Luis Valley Rural Electric Cooperative (SLVREC) of Monte Vista, CO, fifteen of SLVREC’s residential members recently took part in a stakeholder engagement process by attending three focus groups. Facilitated by Charise Swanson of Hometown Connections, all meetings were conducted virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The participants were representative of the entire SLVREC service area and included complainants from a 2019 PUC complaint.
Member Engagement: Residential Focus Groups Wrap Up
The first meeting, held in September, educated the participants on the electric industry, as well as rate making. Other discussions involved customer service, communication and rates.
Following the meeting, participants were invited to send questions to the facilitator for review and answering by REC staff.
Conversations during the second meeting, held four weeks later, involved the previous questions, along with SLVREC’s responses. Subsequently, participants were once again encouraged to send additional input or clarifying questions for REC’s review. Based on feedback from meeting two, an additional Zoom group was set up for interested participants to learn about REC’s most recent cost-of-service study.
In the final meeting, held on Nov. 18, participants were given a draft interim report developed by Charise. The document includes all participant questions, rate input, along with SLVREC’s responses and is available for viewing online at slvrec.com/about-us (see “2020 SLVREC Stakeholder Engagement Interim Report” button).
In early 2021 similar focus group meetings will be held with 8-10 agriculture and commercial members.
About San Luis Valley REC
We are proud to be the second oldest electric cooperative in Colorado. We serve the counties of Rio Grande, Costilla, Saguache, Alamosa, Conejos, Mineral and Hinsdale. More than 7,500 member owners work with our team for power in their homes, schools, farms, and other small businesses. Visit https://www.slvrec.com/.
About Hometown Connections, Inc.
A single source for many solutions, Hometown Connections, Inc. is a national, non-profit utility services organization specializing in the unique challenges facing community-owned utilities. Our team of consultants and vendor partners will help you streamline business processes, enhance customer service, improve security, develop plans for the future, and much more. Visit https://www.hometownconnections.com/.