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hey what was the result of yesterdays interview? bullet pts anywhere?
An era of paper making in Groveton is over
Barbara Tetreault
GROVETON— Over a hundred years of paper making in Groveton has come to an end. While about 40 Wausau Paper employees will remain to ship out the existing inventory of paper products and maintain the building through the winter months, the paper machines have ceased operation.
Wausau Paper Vice President David Atkinson said the last reel of paper came off the No. 6 paper machine on Wednesday, Dec. 19, and the last reel on the No. 5 paper machine came off on Thursday, Dec. 20.
Atkinson said last week workers focused on cleaning and winterizing the plant. Friday was the last day for anyone working in paper and production.
He compared the mood at the plant the last days to a wake and said there was a lot of reminiscing and storytelling going on. Many of the workers, like Atkinson, are third generation paper makers.
“You have the memories to talk about,” he said.
Atkinson had nothing but praise for his employees. He said the workers were determined to go out with their “heads held high” and worked very efficiently to put out a quality work product in those last weeks, despite knowing the plant was closing.
“It says something about the Groveton work force,” he said.
He said Wausau will continue to heat the sections of the building that need heat and operate the wastewater treatment facility.
“We are not abandoning the property,” Atkinson stressed.
In fact, he said Wausau’s focus will shift from closing down the facility to trying to find a buyer. Atkinson said the company has already shown the property to a couple of potential buyers. Wausau will not sell the mill to a competitor but is open to other offers.
Groveton Paper Board still owns part of the property but the parties are working to resolve the ownership issue for any potential buyer.
For the approximately 300 workers losing their jobs, a Worker Assistance Center has been set up at the USW Local 61 union hall in Groveton. Some counselors were also set up in the mill to serve workers onsite.
NH Works-Rapid Response Coordinator Ron Giroux said two Workforce Investment counselors and two N.H. Employment Security counselors are already working. Three former mill workers have been hired as peer support counselors and union head Murray Rogers was selected as the center manager. Giroux said the center is in the process of hiring a job developer.
Giroux and a couple of his seasoned counselors are working out of the center to help train the new staff. There are two programs, the Trade Adjustment Act and the Workforce Investment Act, providing various forms of assistance to the displaced workers. Giroux said already some workers are making career changes and signing up for nursing and culinary training programs.
While the center has been busy, Giroux said he expects it will get busier now that mill is closed and most workers will wake up Tuesday morning without a job for the first time in years.
“They have someplace to go to work through their issues,” he said. While much of the focus is on job searching and training skills, the center can also connect workers with financial and mental health counseling.
“They know there’s a team effort here to help them out,” Giroux said.
He pointed out that the state Department of Resources and Economic Development has its North Country agent, Beno Lamontagne, working out of Groveton. He said DRED is actively trying to attract new businesses to the town. Both the Wausau and Groveton Paper Board properties are listed for sale on the state’s web page.
Lumber company cuts jobs in reaction to mill closure
Craig Lyons
GROVETON— Around 6:30 p.m. on Christmas day, Gille Hallee found out he had been laid off from Perras Lumber.
Hallee, a resident of Dummer, was one of 12 employees laid off from the company over the holidays.
As a result of the closure of the Wausau Paper mill, Robert Perras, owner of Perras Lumber, said he was forced to cut jobs manufacturing palettes for the mill.
The company cannot sustain a large workforce without a buyer for the product, Perras said.
Both Hallee and Perras said a majority of the palettes manufactured at the facility in Groveton—70 to 80 percent— went directly to the mill.
“It was a big hit for me,” said Perras.
Hallee said he and the other workers were told by Perras that some lay offs would be coming. He added the laid off workers would be eligible for job training and assistance like the programs offered for the 303 displaced workers at the Wausau mill.
Perras said of the 12 people, eight have already signed up for the training, two were of retirement age and two others are still deciding what to do.
Hallee said he is looking into signing up for the training programs but it will be tough for him to find another job. Hallee is turning 64 and has worked in saw mills his whole life.
“I really don’t know what I’m going to do,” said Hallee. He added his age will definitely work against him while he’s out looking for another job.
Hallee said the lay offs at Perras Lumber are a small part of what will be happening throughout the community. The closure of the mill will be effecting a lot more businesses than just the lumber company, he said.
Perras thinks there will definitely be a ripple effect felt for business in the area because of the closure. Not only will business be changing but the way people spend their money will change, he said.
“It’s just a fact of life until another industry comes here,” said Perras.
Perras said he is working to transition the lumber company to prepare for the future.
Perras said he started looking for another buyer when he heard the mill was closing but it’s hard because he’s located so far north. With the cost of fuel it will be costly to ship palettes and other lumber products, he said.
He said he’s also starting to manufacture other types of lumber products in order to move his business forward in the future.
Perras said he hopes things for the company will start looking up in the new year and he’ll eventually be able to hire back some workers.
“I believe we’re going to keep making lumber,” said Perras.
Water Works warns rate increase may be necessary
BERLIN— After nine years without an increase in the city’s water rate, the water works commission yesterday gave notice that a rate increase may be necessary in 2008.
In a press release, the commission noted its customer base has declined and its revenue took a 10 percent hit when the pulp mill closed. To control costs and balance its budget, water works has cut the department from 18 to 13 employees over the last seven years.
Since 1993, Berlin Water Works has received over $23 million in loans and $19 million in grants to upgrade the water system. In the current budget, Water Works pays $1.5 million on the $13 million debt it carries for the water improvement projects.
The commission said it has done much of the work on the water system using its own staff and equipment, allowing it to retain employees. But the commission noted new grant funding has not be available for the last two years. The release said there is $2.4 million remaining that will support two to three years of additional planned work. But the days of being able to count on that funding to balance the water works budget appear to be over,
Berlin Water Works has signed a $2.08 million contract with the federal Bureau of Prisons to install a water service line to the federal prison which will become a customer. Water works will install the new main which is scheduled to be completed before Oct. 1, 2008.
The commission cited the progress that has been made replacing miles of old small diameter water lines in the city. Water leaks have been reduced significantly as has the number of people who have to run their water during the winter to prevent freeze-ups.
yea the town of berlin should be bending over backwards for this company. Coos county raising taxes 18% ouch. crime doubled. they need all the jobs they can get.
from yesterdays paper;
Study projects impact of Groveton mills closure
‘End of an era’ may mean estimated jobs lost totaling 742 by 2009
Gail Scott
CONCORD— The mill closures in Groveton will have a devastating impact on Groveton and surrounding communities, according “Coos County Perspectives—The Groveton Mill Closures,” a report from the New Hampshire Department of Employment Security’s Economic and Labor Market Information.
The report points out that new opportunities are beginning to emerge even though “the 150 year reign of paper in Coos County” is coming to an end. Economic redevelopment prospects include the federal prison construction and proposed green energy plants, the report projects. However, things will get worse before they get better, according to the report’s econometric modeling of the near future.
The report counts the following direct impacts:
• The 303 jobs to be lost at the Groveton Wausau Paper Mill when it closes Dec. 31 represent 38 percent of Northumberland’s total covered employment in 2006. When added to the prior loss of 108 jobs from Groveton Paperboard, the share rises to 46 percent.
• Between the two mills, the total loss of 411 jobs represents 3.7 percent of Coos County’s total private employment in 2005.
• Forty-four percent of the Wausau workers (134) live in Groveton/Northumberland and 25 percent (76) live in the adjacent communities of Stratford, Lancaster, and Stark in New Hampshire and Guildhall and Maidstone in Vermont.
• 10 percent of Wausau workers (30) commute from Berlin.
• Based on simulation results from an econometric model developed by Regional Economic Models, Inc. (REMI), the Wausau Mill closure impacts the economy of Coos County in the following ways:
• In 2008 536 jobs will be lost—the initial removal of Wausau’s 303 jobs from the manufacturing sector in paper, pulp and paperboard, plus the loss of 233 additional jobs throughout the county.
• Statewide the number rises to 599. Therefore, the loss of each Wausau job creates a secondary effect of 0.977 additional jobs lost from other areas of the state’s economy.
• The Wausau closure will also create a $72.36 million reduction (in fixed 2000 dollars) in Coos County’s Gross Regional Product (GRP). This figure represents 7.5 percent of Coos County’s total GRP.
• In 2008, the population of Coos is projected to fall by 62. By 2018, the model projects a county population of nearly 300 fewer than if the mill continued to operate. These losses continue to grow throughout the simulation period.
• The average annual compensation (wages and benefits) of Coos County workers will drop by $709 in the first year, and by 2018 wages will be more than $1,000 below levels forecast assuming continued operation of the mill.
In its analysis of the Wausau mill population, the report notes that Wausau Paper, Inc., based in Mosinee, Wisconsin, employs 3,200 people in seven states, and has operated the Groveton mill since 1993. The Groveton facility employs 303 people, 39 of whom (12.9 percent) were in supervisory positions. The average length of service of Groveton’s employees is 21.4 years and they receive an average hourly wage of $31.36 for salaried workers and $18.64 for hourly workers, according to information supplied by Greg Nolin, Wausau Paper Mill Human Resources director.
The hourly employees affected by the mill closing range in age from the youngest worker at age 25 to the oldest at 67. The average age is 49.6 years. The salaried workers are slightly more concentrated in age, according to the report, covering the span from 31 years to 61, with an average of 50.5.
The closure of the two mills in Groveton account for nearly 60 percent of all private jobs in Northumberland, according to the report.
Employment in paper manufacturing in all of New Hampshire has diminished radically since the first quarter of 2001 when almost 4,000 people were employed in the industry, according to the report. By 2006 Coos County’s share of paper manufacturing in the state was 36.3 percent, second to Hillsborough’s 42.9 percent. By the first quarter of 2007 the total number of paper industry employees in N.H. had dropped to 1,900. With the closure of Groveton Paperboard in March 2006 and the Fraser Burgess mill in Berlin in May 2006 and now the Wausau Mill in Groveton, the North Country is bearing the brunt of the retreat of paper manufacturing from New Hampshire.
The report notes that the construction of a federal prison in Berlin will bring some employment relief. The model for this report anticipates the addition of 150 construction jobs in 2007 and 301 in both 2008 and 2009. The second boost to economic activity is anticipated when the prison is fully staffed, adding 325 federal civilian government jobs. However, the model anticipates that 40 percent of these jobs will be filled by employees transferring from other correctional facilities and that two-thirds of the new hires will not be from northern New Hampshire.
The impact of mill job losses is indirect as well as direct because the mills are no longer purchasing goods and services and the mill workers will no longer purchase goods and services locally. According to the report, the impact on population will become more pronounced over time. People may not move away immediately, but if no new employment opportunities arise, they are more likely to leave. The loss would be exponential because not just workers but families would leave. The model in this report projects such losses stabilizing at about 500 fewer residents than previously projected for Coos County. This would have a drastic impact on such services as health care and education. Because the large percentage of workers at the Wausau Mill were residents of Northumberland, according to the report, the impact of these losses will be greatest on the town with losses in property tax as well.
Losses in Coos County, according to the model used in the report, may result in retail sales being off by $44 million and spending on food services and drinking places down by almost $1.2 million.
The report anticipates that the logging industry may lose 14 jobs in 2008 and other commercial and residential real estate businesses can be expected to feel the downturn. Gross Regional Product (GRP) for Coos County will be $98.5 million lower in 2008 than originally projected, a reduction of 9.4 percent, according to the report. Meanwhile, average annual compensation for Coos County workers will decline by $924 in 2008 because the jobs lost were high paying with higher than average benefits. The baseline average annual compensation for pulp, paper, paperboard workers in Coos County is $65,173 nominal dollars in 2008 as compared to $30,519 nominal dollars as the average for all Coos County workers, according to the report.
Countering these gloomy prospects, the report estimates that although 82 percent of the additional federal civilian government jobs prompted by the opening of the federal prison will be filled with people from outside the region, 240 households will migrate to Coos County by 2010, adding 624 new residents under 64 years in Coos County.
But, the report continues, even though the jobs created by adding the federal prison are comparable in wages and benefits, the number of jobs lost in the paper industry are more than double the number of jobs to be created at the prison (661 jobs lost vs 325 gained, according to model’s numbers).
The report notes the prospect of the renewable energy park in Groveton by North Country Renewable Energy, LCC, a partnership between Tamarack Energy and Xgenesys Development Corporation, but cautions that such a facility has huge hurdles to overcome. Among these, permitting for such a plant will take time, biofuel from wood chips as proposed by the company principals is still in the experimental stage, and transmitting power from such a plant is problematic, considering the present inadequacies of the lines and the high cost of updating access to the grid and to the power market.
The furniture industry is another prospective employer but again, notes the report, location and limited transportation access present problems for both workers and shipping and the furniture industry is vulnerable to foreign competition.
A final section of the report analyzes the transferable skills that workers at the Wausau Mill probably acquired, breaks down the employee groups to skills such as finishing, mechanical, shipping and specific job skill categories according to Standard Occupational Codes. The goal of such details appears to be to encourage the search for work options.
“Many pieces need to come into place to help provide new opportunities in the north, with more variety in the industrial mix, a key to preventing the ‘single basket of eggs’ from being dropped,” the report concludes.
17 baby!
Did any of you pick up "Cognac" in the CC? its not listed on DKAM's page. the one interscope artist who's selling eveything is 50 cent. if he landed him........ BOOM
hey all this is a link to an on line radio show that i call, http://www.stocktalklive.net/ i try to keep people informed re LLEG its not pump radio or spam radio. some of you have more info than i so if you could, could you call in? or any other stock that's out there. the more eyes on a stock the better!
little greenage today
hiya
as you can see i've posted on ongoing news events in Berlin NH as i own property in NH. I've got a vested interest as this plant will directly affect me. All i wanted to do was to share LLEG news. ty
whatever i'm riding freebies
oh man........
CACS
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Subject to the terms and conditions of the Merger Agreement, at the effective time of the Merger (the “Effective Time”), each issued and outstanding share of common stock of Carrier Access will be converted into the right to receive $2.60, subject to adjustment. Each outstanding in-the-money option to purchase common stock of Carrier Access will vest immediately prior to the Effective Time, and option-holders will be entitled to receive $2.60 per share, subject to adjustment, less the exercise price of the option and applicable taxes.
North American Dismantling and Laidlaw hope to close deal soon
Barbara Tetreault
BERLIN— North American Dismantling officials report they are very close to finalizing the sale of the chemical recovery boiler, along with 60 acres of land, to Laidlaw Energy.
The two companies held a briefing and tour for local officials Friday to answer questions about Laidlaw’s plan to convert the boiler into a 58-megawatt biomass plant. NAD Attorney Jack Crisp said the company also wanted to show officials the 120-acre site now that the pulp mill has been dismantled.
Crisp said he expects the sale of the boiler to Laidlaw will occur by the end of this year or early next year. He said the sale has taken longer than the parties liked.
“We’re diligently trying to get the deal done,” said Louis Bravakis, head of planning and development for Laidlaw.
Laidlaw also sought to address how it plans to get its power onto the transmission grid. The Coos County grid can handle only handle another 100 megawatts of electric power without a major upgrade. Noble Environmental Power is next in the ISO-New England queue with its 100-megawatt wind farm proposal for Phillips Brook. There are six other projects in the queue, excluding the Laidlaw facility which has yet to file its interconnection application. Projects are taken in the order they apply, meaning the Noble wind farm would use the available capacity.
Bravakis said his company believes it can get its facility running and on the grid first because it is converting an existing boiler. He said when Noble comes on line, there would still be some capacity available because wind farms only run on average 30 percent of the time.
Raymond Kusche of Laidlaw said the company can afford to run at 70 percent capacity until there is a solution to the transmission issue because it is not building a biomass plant from scratch.
“We’re not building a brand new plant. We don’t have the huge capital costs that you would need to build a brand new 60-megawatt biomass plant,” Kusche said.
Bravakis said there is a demand for renewable energy throughout the country. At the same time, there is a recognition that the economy of the North Country needs help. He said Laidlaw is confident the political will is there to get the system upgraded.
“It’s a very calculated risk but it is a risk,” Kusche said.
John Defusco of Babcock and Wilcox addressed issues about the boiler. Babcock and Wilcox rebuilt the chemical recovery boiler back in 1992 when James River owned the facility and Laidlaw has hired the company to provide technical support.
Defusco said the boiler will use a bubbling fluidized bed which is highly efficient and has low environmental emissions. He said his company has converted two other chemical recovery boilers to fluidized beds and had good success in both cases.
Crisp noted that the pulp mill site looks dramatically different that it did in October 2006 when NAD began dismantling the mill. NDA President Rick Marcicki said 250,000 square feet of buildings were backfilled and covered to create as much of a level site as possible. Crisp stressed that the demolition was basically ground level - deep foundations were not removed.
A number of buildings were retained. One was the old so-called Riverside building which Laidlaw asked NAD to retain. Bravakis said the building has historical significance and he would like to explore connecting it to the Northern Forest Heritage Park.
The filter house, which supplies water to the Fraser paper mill in Gorham though a 6-foot underground penstock, is still there. Also left was the scale house and cutter building, which Bravakis said Laidlaw believes is suitable for other businesses.
Bravakis promised the recovery boiler will look cleaner after it is converted to a biomass plant. He said the piping on the right side will be removed and the siding will be uniform. Two small buildings will be attached to it.
Asked about noise and dust, Bravakis said the plant will have to meet stringent air emission standards to qualify for renewable energy credits. Bravakis said chipping will not be done on site except on a limited basis during mud season. There will be no blowing of chips as was done in the pulp mill which should eliminate dust.
Laidlaw will use about 20 acres of the 60 acres it will purchase. Bravakis said Laidlaw needed the extra acres because it wanted the scale house. He said that leaves 40 acres Laidlaw wants to develop into an environmental industrial park in partnership with the city. He said the company is open to the idea of a recreation trail on the property to take advantage of the magnificent views.
Laidlaw has also signed a memorandum of agreement with Fraser to supply the Gorham paper mill with hot water that would help Fraser reduce its operating costs.
North American Dismantling was asked if it would consider selling the mill site to the city if the deal with Laidlaw falls through.
“North American Dismantling would consider any possibility and that would include the city without question,”Crisp replied.
The session, which included lunch at Sinibaldi’s Restaurant, attracted about about a dozen officials including Mayor-elect David Bertrand, Councilor Diana Nelson, Councilors-elect Ronald Goudreau and David Poulin, and Citizens for a New Vision head Steve Griffin.
nice page tina! link was posted in STL chat
freshest breath in town!
gee its too bad you didn't avg down when it was below .01. i did. now i'm riding over 100k freebies 8^)
you can take that out of the float
but maybe if you keep repeating scam/skeptical someone will dump em on ya
no answer homie
Wish him a Happy Birthday :)
Charlie Bass i'm sure wants back in office, this could be his saving grace
Katie how many jobs can you provide? 35?
Mill workers shocked to hear news of the mill closing
Craig Lyons
GROVETON— After 39 years of working in the mill, Roi Charlette found out he would be losing his job on Dec. 31, from the Channel 9 News.
Yesterday, the Wausau Paper mill announced it would be closing on Dec. 31 leaving its 303 workers out of jobs.
“That [work in the mill] is all I’ve done," said Charlette, adding he started working in the finishing room of the mill four days after graduating from high school.
Charlette said when he heard the news he was surprised, as were many of his co workers at the mill. He added many people didn’t see this coming, and there were no rumors around the mill that it was shutting down.
“I though I could retire right here,” said Charlette, pointing to mill.
But Charlette is still four years away from retirement and will need to go and find a new job.
“How am I going to find a job?” asked Charlette, adding he’s always lived around the corner from the mill, walked to work and has never gotten a driver’s license. He also added it will be difficult to find work because everybody employed at the mill will be looking at the same jobs.
Town Manager Lorna Aldrich said the governor will be sending a team to look into the situation in Groveton to help with finding new jobs and supporting the workers.
“We were all shocked,” said Aldrich. “We didn’t see it coming.”
But for the moment, she said all the town can do is be supportive.
“A lot of things could happen between now and Dec. 31,” said Aldrich.
But when Dec. 31, rolls around, the mill will have closed it doors to almost its entire staff.
David Atkinson, operations manager at the mill, said there will some transitional jobs at the facility but no more than 30. He added shipping and distribution will also still be until halfway through 2008.
Atkinson said he’s been working in the mill for about 23 years and it was tough to hear the mill would be closing.
“It was the hardest day of my professional career,” said Atkinson.
He said it was unfortunate many of the workers needed to hear about the closing through the news. But, he added, it would be difficult to let the workers know in person because of the way the shifts run at the facility.
“It wasn’t done on purpose,” said Atkinson. He added he’s been meeting with many workers today as possible.
“It was kind of a bad day working,” said Armand Bernard.
Unlike many workers, Bernard did not hear it from the mill, but a co-worker who told him while he gassing up his car.
“I thought it was going to be something but not a total shut down,” said Bernard, who has worked in the mill for just under 40 years. “I wouldn’t have anticipated a total shut down.”
He added he’ll be 62 next month and will qualify for retirement, but a large population of the workers are still four to five years away from retirement.
Atkinson said a severance package is currently in the works for the workers. Also, next week, Wausau Paper will be having talks with the United Steel Workers Union, that represents about 250 employees, on their severance package.
Just after leaving his shift at the mill, James Hickey passed a lottery ticket to the cashier at the Groveton Market hoping he would win his early retirement, but the ticket was not a winner.
Hickey has worked in the mill for over 35 years and said he anticipated the day this would happen to Wausau after the Groveton Paper Board closed.
“Life goes on,” said Hickey. “We’ll have to go to work somewhere else.”
Lori Burt does not work in the mill but said it will be difficult to find work in the area with all the mill closings that have happened.
“That’s a lot of places that need help,” said Burt. She added a proposed biomass facility will help but there’s still a lot of people that will not be able to get jobs there.
Karl Sawyer also said he thought the biomass facility will help, but getting the facility in the town will take a lot of time.
Sawyer said the town could also looking at bringing more tourism into the town. He added putting in a few campgrounds or specialty shops would help attract more people to the area.
“God knows we’ve got the area for it,” said Sawyer.
Wausau Paper plant in Groveton to close Dec. 31
Barbara Tetreault
GROVETON— Wausau Paper is permanently closing its Groveton paper mill at the end of this year. Three hundred employees will lose their jobs.
The Wausau mill is the third North Country paper mill to close since March 2006. The Fraser Papers mill in Gorham will remain the sole paper mill left as the industry that once fueled the North Country’s economy continues to move offshore.
“This is nothing short of having to change your economy,” said Coos Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Peter Riviere.
Wausau made the announcement yesterday as it released its third quarter financial results. While the company reported net earnings of $6.1 million for the quarter, Fraser said its printing and writing segment had an operating loss of $1.3 million. The company said the segment profitability continues to be limited by a decline in demand for uncoated freesheet papers and chronically oversupplied markets in North America. Closing the Groveton mill will cut its printing and writing production by 105,000 tons or 28 percent.
“This isn’t unexpected given the worldwide pressure on paper manufacturers,” said Riviere. He pointed out that paper mills have been closing all across the Northern Forest region. While he said Coos economic development officials had hoped to have at least two or three more years before having to deal with another mill closing, he argued the situation is not as dire as when Groveton Paper Board and the Berlin mills closed.
“There are some good things happening,” he said.
Riviere said state and local officials have made three trips to Canada to recruit new businesses and have at least two strong prospects. The initiative to expand high speed broadband through the region is moving ahead and the federal government has funded development of an economic recovery plan. Riviere noted there are a number of alternate energy proposals and organizations throughout the county are working on a branding and marketing effort.
Berlin City Planner Pamela Laflamme said the announcement points to the need for the county to work together to reinvent its economy.
“We really do have to work hard as a region to change our direction,” she said.
Governor John Lynch said the state said it will do all it can to assist the workers who will lose their jobs Dec. 31.
"I know this will be extremely difficult for the workers employed by the mill, and their families. New Hampshire state government is committed to helping them through this difficult time," Gov. Lynch said. "I spoke this afternoon with members of our state Rapid Response team and directed them to begin making plans to meet with workers at Wausau and to provide them with job training and job placement assistance."
The governor’s office said the Rapid Response team will soon take an assessment of every worker at the Wausau mill to determine what their needs may be in order to help them re-enter the workforce. Assistance can include resume writing and job counseling, to retraining. The Rapid Response team includes representatives of the state departments of Employment Security, Labor, Resources and Economic Development, Health and Human Services, the New Hampshire Community College System and NHWorks.
The state Division of Economic Development's Business Recruitment Team is preparing a plan to attract a new company to the Wausau site. The division has also been actively engaged in trying to recruit new businesses to the North Country.
Mill site forum set for Nov. 13
Barbara Tetreault
BERLIN— What is being billed as a ‘community panel discussion on the mill site’ is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 13, at 7 p.m. at the N.H. Community College.
City Planner Pamela Laflamme said Steve Barba, executive director of University Relations for Plymouth State University, has agreed to serve as moderator for the event. Barba served as the moderator for a similar forum back in February.
A six member panel is being assembled to engage in what Laflamme described as a “broad-ranging discussion” on the mill site.
The panel will be lead by N.H. Commissioner of Resources and Economic Development George Bald. Laflamme said Bald was selected for his history with the community and the mill site. Bald was instrumental in arranging the sale of entire mill complex to Fraser after the bankruptcy of American Tissue.
Representing North American Dismantling, the owner of the 130 acre site, will be Attorney Jack Crisp. Steve Griffin of Isaacson Structural Steel will represent Citizens for a New Vision which opposes industrial use of the site including plans for a biomass plant there. Barry Kelley of White Mountain Lumber will provide the forest industry’s viewpoint.
Laflamme said the other two panelists will consist of representatives from the state and city. She said she is still firming up commitments from representatives from the two governments. She noted the state has control of the cell house site and the Dummer yard landfill which both abut the pulp mill site.
Each of the panelists will be given an opportunity for opening remarks and updates. Then Barba will ask follow-up questions that he might have before the panel is opened up to questions and comments from the crowd. People wishing to ask questions or make comments will be asked to sign up first.
Laflamme said she is looking forward to a healthy discussion about the city’s future as it relates to the mill site.
“Hopefully everyone will have an opportunity to ask questions or speak their mind,” she said.
Laidlaw Energy will be invited to attend the forum but has not been asked to serve on the panel. Laidlaw has proposed to purchase the chemical recovery boiler and convert it into a biomass plant. At this point, Laflamme said Laidlaw does not own the land nor has it submitted a formal proposal to state and local officials.
“This is not going to be a forum on biomass,” she said.
The mayor and city council last month agreed to host a forum on the pulp mill site to gauge what the public would like to see on the site. The council split on the issue with several members arguing the city’s options are limited since the property is privately owned. Others argued citizens wanted an opportunity to express their opinions on the future of the property. Mayor Robert Danderson broke the tie in favor of hosting a forum.
The city has received funds from DRED and the Tillotson Fund to cover the cost of updating the city’s master plan. The city received proposals from six companies to perform the update. Laflamme said the master plan committee has selected four of the firms to interview Monday and hopes to have a decision to announce at next month’s planning board meeting. The four finalists are: Saratoga Associates of Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Louis Berger Group of Manchester, E2 with Renaissance Planning Group, and Jeffrey Taylor & Associates of Concord.
Council cuts tax increase to 85 cents
Final figure to be set by state
Barbara Tetreault
BERLIN— Thanks largely to an increase in the valuation of the city’s utility properties, the city council last night slashed the proposed tax rate increase to 85 cents. That is less than half the $2.05 increase anticipated when the council passed the city budget in June.
The city council had projected a tax rate of $31.29. Last night, it reduced that projected figure to $30.10. The final rate will be set by the state Department of Revenue Administration but city officials said they are confident they can defend the lower rate.
Under the $30.10 rate rate, the owner of a property valued at $80,000 would see a $68 increase in their 2007 tax bill.
City Manager Patrick MacQueen said the city’s total valuation is up approximately $8.5 million because of an increase in the valuation of the city’s utility properties. He said there is also a $237,735 increase in revenues over what was projected. Councilor Paul Grenier, who serves as a county commissioner, said the latest county tax figures show a $85,000 decrease in Berlin’s county tax expenditure.
Mayor Robert Danderson called for using the combination of increased revenues and decreased expenditures to cut the projected tax rate. He argued many residential taxpayers saw their tax bills jump last year when the revaluation shifted a larger share of the tax burden onto residential properties.
“They got hit with a sizable increase,” he said.
The council quickly agreed. Grenier said the community and region are going through tough economic times. He said cutting the tax rate would be a good gesture on the council’s part.
The board of assessors this month approved new valuations for the city’s utilities including the Portland Natural Gas Transmission System’s pipeline and the hydro facilities owned by Great Lakes Hydro and Public Service of N.H. The city hired consultant George Sansoucy to appraise all the utility properties as well as the pulp mill site.
Both Grenier and Danderson said they were comfortable with the valuations set by Sancoucy. Danderson said the valuations on the hydro facilities are based on the generating capacity of the facilities. He noted both Great Lakes Hydro and PSNH recently made upgrades to their hydro facilities.
Grenier said Sansoucy’s valuations were conservative and predicted none of the utilities will challenge their valuations.
“Our figures are very easily defendable in court,” said Grenier.
Berlin’s total valuation increased from $452.8 million to $461.3 million. MacQueen said no date has been set for the meeting with DRA officials.
AMTD screwed up NTCI!!!!! get on them!
http://www.sec.gov/complaint/selectconduct.shtml
its on stock talk live http://www.stocktalklive.net/ sorry for the delay in response i just checked my mail
Laidlaw head says biomass plant can be catalyst for local economy
Barbara Tetreault
BERLIN— The president of Laidlaw Energy LLC ., said his company is proposing to develop a biomass plant on the former pulp mill property that will provide the region with jobs and the city with significant tax revenues.
At the same time, Michael Bartoszek said the plant will not create the air emissions, noise, and odor associated with the pulp mill. He said it will provide a source of renewable energy that will help the state meet its renewable energy needs.
In a phone interview with the "Berlin Daily Sun", Bartoszek said he believes the biomass plant could be a catalyst for the city’s efforts to stimulate economic growth. He said the plant would employ about 40 people with an annual payroll of $2 million. It would also purchase approximately 750,000 tons of wood at an estimated cost of $20 million a year.
The money pumped into the local economy by the plant, Bartoszek said would help create a demand for services such as hotels and stores. The tax revenues would enable the city to invest in its infrastructure.
Bartoszek envisions the mill site becoming a bio-commerce park with other companies locating there to take advantage of the green power and low cost thermal energy available from the plant.
Laidlaw is seeking to purchase 50 acres of the 130-acre site. He said there is room for other businesses on both sites and revealed Laidlaw has a company interested in locating a new business on the property.
Bartoszek said he is aware there is opposition to Laidlaw’s plan to convert the former chemical recovery boiler into a 60 to 70 megawatt biomass plant. A local group, Citizens for a New Vision, has formed to oppose industrial development on the mill site which is owned by North American Dismantling.
He points out that the biomass plant is far different from the pulp mill that existed on the property for over a hundred years. Bartoszek said there is no odor associated with the biomass plants and new technology will enable his company to make the facility one of the cleanest burning biomass plants in the country.
As an example of a biomass plant operating in the heart of a downtown, Bartoszek referred to a Sept. 28 article in the Concord Monitor newspaper. The article reported on the Concord Steam plant which burns a combination of wood and oil to provide steam heat to 210 buildings. Located on the grounds of the state hospital, the plant’s smokestack is visible from the downtown. The article said few residents are aware of its existence.
Bartoszek said his company wants to work with the community on the project. Their plans include constructing a walking path along the river for the public.
He said Laidlaw would be willing to attend a community forum being planned for the mill site.
“We certainly would participate if we’re invited,” he said.
Laidlaw is still awaiting a final report from the company that installed the boiler back in 1993, Babcock and Wilcox, on converting the boiler. The bottom portion of the boiler would be removed and replaced with a bubbling fluidized bed like the one used at Public Service’s Schiller station.
“Based on discussions with them, everything looks pretty good,” Bartoszek said.
He said Laidlaw hopes to finalize purchase of the boiler by the end of this month.
The plant would burn wood chips. Bartoszek said the air permit will specify what can be burned in the facility. New Hampshire bans the burning of construction debris and Bartoszek ruled out burning waste materials.
“We would not envision burning anything other than clean wood residual,” he said.
Laidlaw would store wood on site but would try to have most of the chipping done at the job site.
“We want wood chips delivered to our site,” he said.
Laidlaw has not submitted applications to either the Site Evaluation Committee or the ISO-New England for permits necessary to build and operate the biomass plant.
“There’s no point in starting the process until we’ve closed on the purchase,” Bartoszek said.
He said much has been made of the fact Laidlaw has not applied to ISO-New England, the private, not-for-profit corporation that oversees the region’s bulk electric power system. Projects in the queue already exceed the capacity of the transmission lines in the North Country.
Bartoszek said he believes Laidlaw can get the biomass on-line before the other projects are ready. Noting the legislature had authorized a study of the issue, Bartoszek said he believes there will be a solution on funding the needed upgrade of the transmission lines.
Laidlaw has formed a partnership with Triangle Equities of Whitestone, N.Y. and invested $1 million in equity capital for the Berlin project. The partnership has hires Greystone Company to arrange a loan for the $55 million cost of the project. Bartoszek said Laidlaw will serve as the operating partner.
To respond to what he calls misinformation about the project, Bartoszek has prepared a list of questions and answers about his company’s proposal. They can be viewed on-line at http://www.nyenrg.com/berlinnhproject.html
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North American Dismantling withdraws application
Barbara Tetreault
BERLIN— North American Dismantling and White Mountain Energy LLC., will not be appearing at tonight’s planning board meeting. The two entities had filed an application for a lot line adjustment that would have created two 60-acre parcels out of the 120-acre pulp mill site.
City Planner Pamela Laflamme said the application has been withdrawn.
“When and if the application is reactivated by both parties, new notices will sent to abutters notifying them of the new date for the public hearing,” Laflamme said.
White Mountain Energy owns the cogeneration facility and the approximately one acre of land it sits on. The limited liability corporation was purchased by North American Dismantling as part of the pulp mill property.
Northern American Dismantling and White Mountain Energy had filed to move the lot line to increase the White Mountain Energy parcel to 60 acres.
Laidlaw Energy Group has an agreement in principle to purchase the cogeneration facility to convert it into a biomass plant. Laidlaw officials last month said they hope to close on the purchase by the end of this month.
The planning board tonight is scheduled to continue its final review of Tom & C Realty's application to develop an 88-unit manufactured home park off Riverside Drive. The board last month wanted to see more progress on the various technical permits and easements the developer needs before voting on final approval.
and...
Mayor attacks biomass opponents for misinformation
Barbara Tetreault
BERLIN— Mayor Robert Danderson last night attacked opponents of the proposed biomass plant for spreading what he called misinformation about the facility.
He said he cast the deciding vote in favor of a public forum on the pulp mill site to “air the issues."
“I’m glad people are talking about it,” he said.
The mayor challenged the Citizens for A New Vision group to work with him in getting out accurate information on biomass facilities.
“Let’s work together. Let’s work with real facts,” Danderson said.
The mayor took about 20 minutes at last night’s council meeting to talk about the controversy that has developed over a proposal to convert the former chemical recovery unit to a 60-megawatt biomass plant. The owner of the mill site, North American Dismantling, has an agreement in principle to sell the plant to Laidlaw Energy LLC.
The mayor reminded the public that he supported a proposal by Public Service of N.H. to build a 50-megawatt biomass plant in Berlin.
“If I had my way, it would be PSNH,” Danderson said. The mayor is a long-time employee of PSNH.
But the mayor noted the legislature twice rejected legislation that would allow PSNH to add new generating capacity by building a biomass plant in the North Country.
Danderson said he is not a big supporter of independent energy producers like Laidlaw. But he said he wants to give developers every opportunity to succeed in Berlin. He said Berlin does not want a reputation as a city that puts up roadblocks to developers.
Danderson said he is disappointed that Laidlaw has not responded to correct the inaccurate information that is being distributed by the Citizens for a New Vision group and others.
Danderson said he has heard reports that the biomass plant is going to burn turkey manure. He said that is untrue. He said it is not economic feasibility to move the chemical recovery boiler to another site as some have proposed.
Seeking to refute reports that biomass plants are polluters, Danderson noted the Schiller biomass plant in Newington was just given the N.H. Department of Environmental Service’s Governor’s Award for pollution prevention.
The mayor said he supports a biomass plant in Berlin because he feels the city desperately needs the property tax revenue. He noted PSNH’s Smith hydro plant has just been assessed by the city’s consultant at $32 million. He said a 50 to 70 megawatt biomass plant would have a valuation two to three times that amount.
“That’s a very large chunk of change,” Danderson said.
hahaha Turkey shit