MACHIASPORT — There might be some relief in sight for Machiasport’s soaring municipal electricity costs.
In an effort to reduce the town’s estimated $11,000 annual electric bill, the Machiasport Board of Selectmen approved seeking funding for two solar streetlights, signaling long‑term interest in alternative energy solutions.
The 2026 costs are nearly double the $6,000 Machiasport budgeted in 2020. The town is in the service territory of Versant Power.
The priority is a “reduction of the tax burden on Machiasport people,” Board of Selectmen Chair Ryan Maker said.
The solar test is being considered as part of a larger lighting project for four areas of Machiasport: the municipal complex, the Town Office, the planned town garage and the pier.
The idea, still in its brainstorming phase, would place solar streetlights in two of the locations to test their impact on public safety, effectiveness and cost savings.
More discussion is expected among the Board of Selectmen, but Town Clerk Marcia Hayward said there will be an initial cost outlay for equipment. Solar streetlights start at about $600 per unit.
The cost increases from there depending on features, such as dusk‑to‑dawn coverage and brightness controlled by a motion sensor.
Hayward said she is evaluating a $3,000 grant for risk reduction, awarded in October 2025, as the primary funding source. The timeline for the solar test has yet to be determined.
The solar streetlight discussion comes on the heels of an LED light upgrade, supported by a 2019 grant, that aimed to transition up to 75 percent of the town’s public lighting.
Hayward said updates made since the town’s initial LED investment use the low‑energy lights. They include lights installed on the east side of Machiasport at Old Bay Road and Pritchard Lane in 2023.
Versant Power owns the utility poles in Machiasport with Consolidated Communications, a company that handles the maintenance.
If the town wants to place its own equipment on an existing pole, it must work with Versant. One option is for the town to buy the light fixtures from Versant, said Judy Long, the company’s senior manager of communications and brand.
The Board of Selectmen is not currently considering this option, and no costs for leasing or purchasing streetlights from Versant have been assessed.
Machiasport is not the only Washington County community exploring sustainable energy for long‑term cost savings.
In 2025, Ellsworth bought 500 formerly leased streetlight fixtures from Versant. With the town’s full LED conversion, officials estimate an 80 percent decrease in annual streetlight costs.
The project included a lease‑to‑own agreement for the lights totaling $400,000 for 500 fixtures, or about $800 per streetlight.
Long said she is hopeful Machiasport will work with the company before finalizing a decision.
Correction: This article was corrected on March 11. It previously inaccurately described the relationship between Versant and Machiasport, the ownership of transmission and distribution infrastructure, a purchase agreement between Ellsworth and Versant for streetlight fixtures, the relationship between Eastport and a proposed AI-data center and a 2023 ballot initiative. It has been updated to reflect the fact that Machiasport is in the service territory of Versant Power, that Versant owns the utility poles and wires in Machiasport and that Ellsworth leased street fixtures from Versant. A section on a 2023 ballot initiative and a data center in Eastport has been removed for accuracy.
Melissa S. Razdrih is a Community Reporting Fellow receiving training through the Journalism New England Career Lab to do civic reporting that provides people in towns across New England with the information they need to be engaged in their community.
