by Fran Cummings, member of Concord Climate Action Committee
As redevelopment planning proceeds for the MCI Concord site, the Town has a rare opportunity to plan integrated district-scale energy infrastructure from the beginning, rather than treating energy and HVAC systems as isolated building-by-building decisions later in the process.
The MCI site is well-suited for coordinated planning of:
– ground-source heat pumps and thermal energy networks (TENs),
– solar PV, battery storage and microgrid-capable electric infrastructure,
– thermal energy storage,
– wastewater and sewer heat recovery,
– flexible electric peak reduction and load management,
– and other long-lived underground and utility infrastructure capable of serving multiple future buildings and uses.
Many of these concepts have already been discussed during earlier vision and planning conversations and should remain central to the redevelopment effort. In the September 2025 Vision package, a consultant recommended to “Deploy a Zero Carbon emissions neighborhood”, saying that “By reimagining how we source, use, and conserve the critical resources [of] energy, water, and materials, we can unlock new pathways to reduce environmental footprints, enhance operational efficiency, and drive long-term value.” They specifically featured “thermal energy networks to deliver low-carbon, cost-effective, and resilient heating and cooling, making them a key strategy in urban decarbonization and climate adaptation efforts.” This was general language in Appendix G in a separate, long document, so now is the time for an explicit schedule to initiate priority work on these details.
The greatest opportunities — including shared borefields, utility corridors, wastewater energy recovery, and phased district energy systems — depend upon decisions about site layout, roadway design, land allocation, and infrastructure sequencing that are established early during master planning. Once parcels, roads, and buildings are finalized independently, many of these opportunities become substantially more difficult and expensive to implement.
With integrated planning at the right scale, these investments such as thermal wellfields, shared utility corridors, and energy storage systems can be structured, financially as well as technically, as durable long-term infrastructure assets with lasting financial, environmental, and resilience value for the participants and the Town.
As previously stated by the Concord Climate Action Committee in April 2025 comments to the MCI Redevelopment Board, “Networked Geothermal heat pumps … should be the first consideration for heating technology,” and such a system “would benefit greatly from including the Wastewater Treatment Plant … and perhaps the river as thermal resources.” The CAC also previously recommended microgrid-capable electric infrastructure with local solar generation and energy storage.
MCI Concord presents an opportunity not only for redevelopment, but for leadership in resilient, low-carbon district energy infrastructure in Massachusetts. The Town should ensure that integrated energy network business planning becomes an early core element of the design and implementation process, with participation from community stakeholders, the Commonwealth, Concord Municipal Light Plant, Public Works and other Town bodies, and major property owners in Town with an interest in the results for application to their own buildings.