Around Town: New England Environmental to break ground early next week

By Scott Merzbach
Staff Writer

Published on October 03, 2008

New England Environmental Inc. will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for its new headquarters on Research Drive Monday at 10 a.m.

The nearly 10,000-square-foot building, approved by the Planning Board in August, will be LEED certified and feature extensive use of solar panels, as well as a rain garden and plantings that can be used by the company to showcase its work.

Julie Marcus of New England Environmental said the building will feature 39,000 watts of solar electricity, a system to be installed at a cost of $330,000. The company has already received a guarantee of $133,000 in rebates from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative's Community Solar Program, and is hoping to land a federal solar tax credit that will cover an additional 30 percent of the costs.

State Sen. Stan Rosenberg, state Rep. Ellen Story and Town Manager Larry Shaffer are all expected to participate in the groundbreaking. Town Meeting members, because of their support for the rezoning that is allowing such a project to move forward, are also being invited.

Marcus said the building should be complete in six to nine months. The company will use 5,600 square feet of the space, with the remainder to be rented to another business, and possibly a portion to be set aside for an accessory apartment.

She praised the work of town officials and employees. "We are very pleased so far with the permitting process," Marcus said. "We've gotten a lot of support from the town."

The permitting included an adjacent piece of land on which a similar building can be constructed. This "shovel ready" property is being listed with the Jones Group.

Marcus said the company intends to spend money locally as much as possible. The building was designed by Kuhn Riddle Architects, will be built by general contractor Bill Rock of Arrowwood Design and Construction, be financed through the Bank of Western Massachusetts and use building materials purchased from W.D. Cowls.

Candidates' forum

The four residents running for the open position on the Select Board are scheduled to participate in a candidates forum sponsored by the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce Oct. 16.

Vladimir Morales, David Keenan, Aaron Hayden and Calvin Brower are all being invited to the event, which will be held at the middle school auditorium from 6 to 7:30 p.m. They are seeking to fill the seat vacated by Anne Awad.

The forum will be moderated by Tony Maroulis, the new executive director of the Chamber.

"This forum represents the role our Chamber will be playing in the future - facilitating connections between taxpayers and our local government, while providing a forum for issues of concern," Maroulis said in a prepared statement.

The forum will be broadcast on ACTV. Another opportunity for residents to hear the views of the candidates will come just before the election on Oct. 29, when the League of Women Voters is also slated to have a candidates' forum.

Budget presentation

A presentation by the Facilitation for Community Choices Subcommittee was scheduled to take place Thursday to outline budget scenarios over the next five years.

The feedback the subcommittee received from the community during this event could help determine what financial direction the town should go. The presentation outlined what level funding, level services and restorations and additions scenarios will look like for the schools, libraries and general government.

Select Board Chairman Gerry Weiss said he has been pleased with the work of the subcommittee, which has been meeting regularly since April. Weiss said he and Andy Churchill, who are co-chairmen of the Budget Coordinating Group, deliberately selected the 11 members of the panel to represent diverse viewpoints, with people both in favor of and opposed to tax-cap overrides or deep budget cuts.

"I think the committee has gelled and it's in sync," Weiss said.

This is perhaps best demonstrated, Weiss said, in that he doesn't expect there to be a minority report filed by the committee. Both the Bulletin and Daily Hampshire Gazette will feature coverage of this presentation and public reaction in future editions.

Meetings

MONDAY: Facilitation of the Community Choices Committee, 9 a.m., Town Room, Town Hall; Select Board, 6:30 p.m., Town Room, Town Hall for joint meeting with Jones Library Board of Trustees, Amherst; School Committee, Finance Committee.

TUESDAY: Jones Library Board of Trustees, 7 p.m., Trustee Room, Jones Library; Public Works Committee, 7 p.m. First Floor Meeting Room, Town Hall.

WEDNESDAY: 250th Anniversary Executive Committee, 3 p.m., Town Room, Town Hall; Public Shade Tree Committee, 4 p.m., First Floor Meeting Room,Town Hall.

THURSDAY: Community Preservation Act Committee, 7 p.m., First Floor Meeting Room, Town Hall.

FRIDAY: Recycling and Refuse Management Committee, 4:30 p.m., Public Works Meeting Room.