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Lenox High students are selling saplings to offset their use of paper.

Lenox Students Planting Trees to Offset Paper Use

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
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The school is partnering with Tree-plenish, which started at Mansfield High School. Here Mansfield students Peter Oldow, Will Giffen, and Cam Eddy are ready to plant last year.
LENOX, Mass. — Lenox Memorial High School students want to plant 100 trees as a way to replace one million sheets of paper.
 
And they're looking for help from the community to purchase the saplings and plant them on April 24.  
 
"Basically we're trying to offset our school's paper usage by getting people to buy trees and then getting volunteers to come with us to go plant them in their homes," said student Sabrina Lewis. "I'm really excited, but also, we do need people to buy more trees."
 
Community members can buy an 18 inch to 24 inch red maple or river birch sapling for $5, which includes delivery and COVID-19 safe planting. 
 
The goal is to replace the estimated million sheets of paper that the school uses each year. Students have already sold around 21 trees.
 
This event was organized by the school's Climate Crisis Control Club in partnership with Massachusetts non-profit organization Tree-Plenish, which began as a senior project in Mansfield and now reaches around 20 states. The student-led nonprofit says it's on target to plant 14,000 trees through partnerships with 90 schools. 
 
The club was started by Lewis and classmate Medeja Rudzinskaite last year and currently has around 13 members.
    
"Even though we're remote now and we use less trees, we're still trying to offset our usage from previous years," Rudzinskaite said.
 
Tree-Plenish reached out to Grade 9 world literature teacher Scott Wade at the beginning of the school year and the club was happy to partner with it.
 
Wade explained that the club is also planning an Earth Day cleanup to beautify local spaces and have a few other projects in the works. Earth Day is on Thursday, April 22.
 
He said this project has also made him realize that many class handouts could be replaced with a Google document or other virtual rendering.

Saplings can be purchased at tree-plenishevents.org/lenox.

 

 


Tags: Lenox Memorial,   trees,   

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Friday Front Porch Feature: Allendale Pines North

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Are you looking for an inexpensive home to raise your family in? Then this might be the home for you. And if not, there's a couple other options.

Our Friday Front Porch is a weekly feature spotlighting attractive homes for sale in Berkshire County. This week we are showcasing model homes at Allendale Pines North.

Teton Management is opening its new manufactured housing development next Allendale Pines at 395 Cheshire Road, and has three different model homes to choose from.

The Monroe with a full porch and with a half-porch, and The Aspire are available to move into in March. 

All the models have three bedrooms and two baths in 1,280 square feet, and include two parking spaces. The Monroe full-porch is on the market for $194,900, Monroe half-porch $189,900, and The Aspire for $204,900. View a video tour here.

The lot rent is $550 a month and it includes trash removal and recycling, as well as water and sewer. Tenants are responsible for their own utilities and lawn care/snow removal. Dogs and cats are allowed, for up to two pets.

We spoke with Val Whaling from Teton Management about the new homes.

What do you think makes this property stand out in the current market? 

The three models — Monroe Full- Porch, Monroe Half -Porch, and The Aspire — are Titan Home products manufactured by Champion Homes and stand out in the current market because:

  • The purchase price of these homes is well below current market rate single-family homes in Berkshire County.

  • The 5 Star Energy-Efficient rating (featuring energy-efficient windows and high- performance insulation) and one-year warranty on the home, sets these homes apart from older, stick-built homes.

  • These homes are built to strict HUD standards and include structural integrity in order to meet federal standards for durability, safety and wind resistance.

Are there any stand-out design features? 

Stand out features include: open concept floorplan, covered porches, stainless steel appliances, large laundry room /mudrooms, and large glass walk-in showers.

What kind of buyer do you see this home being perfect for? 

First time homebuyers/ professionals preferring home ownership vs. renting, empty nesters wanting to downsize, and cost-conscious individuals preferring the affordability of these homes.

What's the neighborhood like? 

Allendale Pines North will be comprised of 22 brand-new homes, on individual lots, set on beautiful property, neighboring the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail. The property is located at 395 Cheshire Road, Pittsfield, offering proximity to retail shopping and dining. Additionally, Allendale Pines North property is well managed by a reputable owner/operator. (All adult community residents are approved via community application approval process.).

What would you say to a buyer trying to imagine their life in this space? 

"Imagine the cost savings of owning a brand-new, energy-efficient home, easy to maintain and allowing the convenience of modern day and easy living, in a quiet, well-managed community."

What does the home come with? 

Included are: Stainless steel Whirlpool appliances (refrigerator with icemaker, dishwasher, and gas stove/oven), and closets equipped with shelf/hanging rod. Plus an 8-by-10-foot Amish built shed, two wooden entrance stairs with wooden handrails and black wrought iron spindles, two-car driveway, sidewalks and brand-new water/sewer infrastructure.

You can find out more about these homes on its listing here.

*Front Porch Feature brings you an exclusive to some of the houses listed on our real estate page every week. Here we take a bit of a deeper dive into a certain house for sale and ask questions so you don't have to.

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