The Center for Ecological Technology (CETsm) will present a free solar energy workshop on Tuesday, April 4th from 7-9 p.m. in the Fisher Science Center at Simon’s Rock College in Great Barrington.
The featured speaker will be Chris Vreeland, a registered professional engineer. This informational workshop is free and open to the public. Pre-registration is encouraged.
Skyrocketing energy costs and concern about our dependence on fossils fuels are leading many people to seek local, clean sources of energy. Recently, dozens of solar electric systems have been installed on homes, schools and public buildings in the Berkshires, and solar hot water systems are once again attracting attention. Grants and tax incentives now help offset the cost of investing in solar energy and other renewable technologies.
CET’s solar energy workshop is a good way to discover if a renewable energy system is a good fit. Those who attend will learn the basics of using energy from the sun to create electricity or heat water. Participants will learn how solar panels work, the system components, how to determine whether they have a good site and how to gain additional benefits through energy efficient improvements.
The workshop will also address average prices for solar electric and solar hot water systems and how to find local installers. The workshop will showcase systems in installed in the Berkshires.
A highlight of the workshop will be information about financial incentives available from Massachusetts and the federal government. Mr. Vreeland will give an overview of tax incentives and will summarize a rebate program currently offered by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to help homeowners and small businesses pay for renewable energy systems.
Please pre-register if you are interested in attending. To find out more or to pre-register, contact Cynthia Grippaldi, at 413-445-4556 ext. 25 or email Nancy at: nancyn@cetonline.org.
CET is a non-profit energy and resource conservation organization that has served western Massachusetts since 1976. CET receives funding from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency. CET is an equal opportunity service provider. This workshop is made possible through grant funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.
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State Housing Secretary Tours Downtown Pittsfield Developments
By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The state's new secretary of the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities on Monday saw how local developers are transforming historic buildings into downtown housing units.
Secretary Juana Matias, appointed to the role in February, toured the former St. Joseph's High School on Maplewood Avenue and the near-complete Wright Building Block on North Street.
Matias observed local leaders working collaboratively to dismantle bottlenecks in housing production, something she said the administration wants to see across all 351 municipalities.
"This is a perfect model of the partnerships we want to see, and we love coming to the ground and seeing how people are leveraging public taxpayer dollars to help address the issue of our time, which is housing production," she said after the tours.
Developer David Carver, of Scarafoni Associates & CT Management Group, is seeking support from the state Housing Development Incentive Program to transform St. Joe's into apartments, and Allegrone Companies has secured millions from the program towards the Wright Building renovation.
They first visited the shuttered school that functioned as a shelter during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, greeted by broken windows and leaving with Carver's vision.
The plan is to transform the school with good bones into 19 apartments, 20 percent designated affordable, and 30 percent of the building for commercial use. Units are expected to cost between $1,700 and $1,900 per month; 14 one-bedroom units and five two-bedroom units are planned.
The project team is in talks with the nearby Berkshire Family YMCA to expand their childcare activities to the building's lower level. Residents and the daycare would use different entrances.
Cassidy Flynn scattered five hits in a complete-game effort in the circle as Lenox upset top-seeded Hoosac Valley, 3-2, in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament. click for more
Brayden Durant struck out seven and walked one in a complete-game effort on the mound Saturday to pitch the Drury baseball team to a 6-0 win over Keefe Tech in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament at Joe Wolfe Field. click for more
Jason Codey struck out 13, walked two and allowed just an infield single as the Generals earned a 7-1 win over Wahconah to claim their third straight regional title. click for more
Gracelyn Wright struck out eight, and Genevieve Lagess went 3-for-5 with four runs batted in as the Hurricanes beat Monson, 17-3, to claim their first Western Mass title in four years. click for more
For the boys, Ward Bianchi helped lead the way with a win in the shot put and a second place in the javelin as the Mounties finished 16 points ahead of runner-up Pittsfield (pending the results of the pole vault, which were unavailable at 11 p.m. Friday night). click for more
