Originally published in the Brattleboro Reformer
PUTNEY — Construction, in the form of eight deep wells to provide thermal groundwater for the heating and cooling needs of a new housing project, has begun on Alice Holway Drive.
The Windham Windsor Housing Trust is going to build 25 units of mixed-income housing in two buildings on land next to the Putney Community Garden and the longtime home of the Putney Farmers Market. The gardens and market will not be moved as a result of the project.
Marion Major of the Housing Trust said that Cushing & Sons Well Drilling of Surry, N.H., had started drilling wells, some as deep as 800 feet, that will provide the water thermal energy to heat and cool the apartments, which are being called “highly energy efficient.” The project is being constructed by ReArch Contractors.
“We gave the contractor a limited notice to proceed so drilling for the ground-source heat pump wells has begun on site,” said the Housing Trust spokeswoman. The depth of the wells will range between 500 to 800 feet, she said.
“We look forward to full construction getting underway later this month with a celebration in early May,” she said.
“It’s great the buildings will be heated with ground-source heat pumps so we’re happy to celebrate that,” she added.
The project has had a rocky road, despite it receiving approval by the town of Putney. Two neighbors had challenged the project repeatedly, first on whether it should have been reviewed under the state’s land use law Act 250, and then on whether the project’s density would violate local zoning regulations.
At the heart of the dispute was whether land on the other side of Alice Holway Drive owned by the Housing Trust could be used in calculating the total acreage needed for the project. The Vermont Supreme Court ultimately upheld the Vermont Environmental Court earlier this year and said it does, clearing the way for the project.
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To find out more about Alice Holway Drive, find our regularly updated info page here: https://www.homemattershere.org/alice-holway-drive-info-page/
