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| Press Release: December 20, 2007 | ||
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| OLVER ANNOUNCES FINAL PASSAGE OF OVER $2.5 MILLION FOR VARIOUS FRANKLIN COUNTY PROJECTS | ||
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman John W. Olver (D-1st District) announced today that the fiscal year 2008 omnibus appropriations bill approved by Congress last night includes over $2.5 million in federal assistance for various projects in Franklin County. Congressman Olver is a member of the Appropriations Committee and Chairman of the Transportation-HUD Appropriations Subcommittee and worked to include the funding in the omnibus spending legislation. The omnibus represents 11 annual appropriations bills pulled together into one package. The bill will fund most of the federal government’s domestic activities in 2008. Olver declared, "This federal funding will help our excelling organizations in Franklin County continue to do their important work." The projects and their included dollar amounts are: $211,500 for Franklin Community Action Programs for At-Risk Youth Community Action’s At-Risk Youth Program promotes positive youth involvement and recognition. This funding will be used to support Community Action’s very successful work in Franklin County and will allow the organization to continue their expansion into Hampshire County. "Community Action has over 30 years of experience assisting youth in Franklin County," Congressman Olver said. "It’s doing crucial work with youth in drug prevention, diversity building and skill development. This funding will help the organization expand its efforts and reach more young people." For more information, contact: Jane Sanders, Executive Director, Community Action, 413-773-3421. $329,000 for Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG) for Law Enforcement Technology These funds will provide infrastructure, licensing and software for implementation of mobile data terminal technology to nine of the largest full-time-staffed police departments in Franklin County - Greenfield, Northfield, Bernardston, Montague, Orange, Deerfield, Erving, Sunderland and Gill Police Departments. The mobile data terminals will provide officers in the field with immediate access to records, such as outstanding warrants and registration information, and a higher level of information security. "This funding will help provide our police departments with the best technology and equipment available to protect the public and improve the safety of officers," Olver said. For more information, contact: Chief David Guilbault, 413-773-5411 ext. 1302 $784,000 for the Franklin Regional Transit Center This funding will be used to plan, design and begin development of a new "green building" transportation center to centralize all transit operations in the region. The Greenfield facility will sell tickets, provide rest rooms, waiting areas sheltered from the weather, concession space such as a coffee shop to serve those waiting, and office space for the transit administrators and operators and the Franklin Regional Council of Governments. The facility will include bus and paratransit berths. Approximately 60 parking spaces will also be included at the facility. "Such a facility should be a boon to Greenfield and Franklin County," said Olver. "This Center will be an anchor and catalyst for the redevelopment of Bank Rowe. We have seen the success of multimodal transportation centers in other communities in western and central Massachusetts, and I am confident that it will be replicated in Greenfield." For additional information, contact: Tina Cote, FRTA Administrator, 413-774-2262, or Linda Dunlavy, FRCOG Executive Director, 413-774-3167 ext. 103 $167,110 for Greenfield Community College’s Advancing and Sustaining the Northern Tier Creative Economy initiative These funds will strengthen the Northern Tier creative communities through activities that increase arts education infrastructure and training, provide capacity-building skills to arts entrepreneurs, develop a networking environment to foster the exchange of ideas and support, and brand the region to increase access to markets and increase the number of visitors to the area. "Franklin County’s creative community is unlike any other," said Olver. "This money will help artists coordinate their creative activities, provide them with specialized business and marketing training, assist them with collective marketing and regional branding, and help them develop professional networks so they can better communicate and showcase their talent." For more information about this project, contact: Regina Curtis, Director of Development, Greenfield Community College, 413-775-1426. $393,600 for Greenfield Community College’s sustainable energy model greenhouse This funding will be used to build a zero-net energy impact solar greenhouse that incorporates passive solar design, thermal storage, energy conservation features, photovoltaics and an active geothermal heating system. The greenhouse will serve GCC students by providing laboratory space, and it will serve the community by providing teaching and learning space. "This greenhouse will allow students, community members and tradespeople to witness firsthand the impact renewable energy technology has on the environment," said Olver. "Greenfield Community College’s ongoing commitment to environmental sustainability is exemplified by this project and is only one of the many actions GCC has taken in recent years to encourage the adoption of renewable energy technology." $393,600 for Wisdom Way Solar Village Rural Development, Inc.’s prototypical 20- or 21-unit Greenfield "Solar Village" will feature state-of-the-art near-zero net energy, affordable homes that will use renewable sources to generate over 80% of a household’s’ energy needs. This funding will assist in the purchase of solar thermal systems and green construction materials for the first phase of the project. "RDI’s approach makes good sense," said Olver. "Green affordable housing will promote health, conserve natural resources, and bring down energy costs for those who have the least to spare. This funding will go a long way to help RDI continue their work of expanding housing and economic opportunities for residents of our community in a thoughtful and environmentally friendly way." For additional information, contact: Paul Douglas, RDI Executive Director, 413-863-9781 ext. 134 $100,000 for FRCOG’s Emergency Preparedness Capacity Building Project This project will focus on multi-agency coordination to enhance community preparedness related to all types of disasters. Franklin County is uniquely susceptible to hazardous risks because of seasonal flooding, potential dam breach, and the close proximity of the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Reactor which has undergone severe degradation. The anticipated outcome of this project is to create and implement a comprehensive disaster response plan and to advance local and regional preparedness through technical assistance, training, and community education and outreach. "It is vitally important that Franklin County have the resources necessary to respond in the face of a natural or man-made disaster. In the event that there were to be an incident involving nuclear or bio-hazardous waste, the county would have a comprehensive and coordinated disaster-mitigation and preparedness plan," said Olver. For additional information, contact: Maureen Mullaney, Franklin Regional Council of Governments, 413-774-1194 ext. 108 $502,313 for health care training at Northern Tier community colleges, including GCC The funding will be used to expand the simulated instructional mannequin system (SIMS) within the community college system along the Northern Tier, allowing for all areas of health care to utilize SIMS as a training tool. Participating colleges will be Greenfield Community College, Mount Wachusett Community College in Gardner, and Berkshire Community College in Pittsfield. "These ‘virtual hospitals’ are excellent training opportunities for health care professionals. They should prove to be a real draw for these schools," Congressman Olver said. For more information, contact: Regina Curtis, Director of Development, Greenfield Community College, 413-775-1426. |
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