Posted by Linda H on 11:12:00 PM
The Department of Energy has finalized a $43 million loan guarantee for Beacon Power Corporation's 20 megawatt innovative flywheel energy storage plant in Stephentown, New York. The plant will help improve the stability and reliability of the state's electric grid and Beacon estimates it will create 20 construction jobs in New York and 40 permanent jobs in Massachusetts.
Beacon Power is an energy storage company headquartered in Tyngsboro, Massachusetts. Having already broken ground on the project, Beacon estimates that a 20 megawatt flywheel‐based frequency regulation plant will reduce carbon dioxide emissions up to 82 percent over its 20‐year life compared to a coal, gas or pumped hydro plant. The flywheel plant also does not emit air pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide or sulfur dioxide.
Posted by Linda H on 11:07:00 PM
The Department of Energy awarded a $137.9 million Smart Grid Investment Grant to NV Energy in Las Vegas, Nevada for a comprehensive smart grid project that will integrate multiple smart grid technologies, including 1.3 million smart meters, dynamic pricing, customer communications and in‐home networks, grid monitoring, distribution automation, distributed renewables, and electric vehicles.
This will help NV Energy manage its electric system more efficiently and enable customers to more actively manage their energy use. Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, NV Energy serves 2.4 million Nevadans ‐‐ as well as a state tourist population of approximately 40 million annually. Additionally, the company serves more than 46,000 electric customers in the Lake Tahoe‐area of California.
15 Nevadans have been employed by this grant and NV Energy estimates that the project will create 400‐500 temporary and 45 permanent jobs.
Posted by Linda H on 10:57:00 PM
Merrill Technologies Group in Saginaw, Michigan will invest $73 million in advanced manufacturing equipment to support the production of nacelles (housing for generating components) for Northern Power's new 2.2 megawatt utility‐scale wind turbine in Saginaw, Michigan.
The company received a $22 million 48C Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit from the Recovery Act to expand production facilities. Merrill is also using $3 million awarded through the U.S. Department of Energy’s State Energy Program under the Recovery to purchase equipment for manufacturing commercial‐sized wind turbine systems.
According to Merrill, they have already been able to recall laid‐off employees and hire some new employees — about 40 in total. The company estimates about 125 employees will need to be brought on when production ramps up in 2011.
Posted by Linda H on 10:46:00 PM
The Welsbach/General Gas Mantle Contamination site in Camden, New Jersey received Recovery Act funding during 2009 for both Remedial Design and Remedial Action activities, totaling $28 million. Of the $28 million, $22 million was allotted to fund a remedial action at this site used to clean up the radiologically contaminated soils around the former General Gas Mantle facility in Camden.
Nearly 20,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil have been excavated from the General Gas Mantle area as of June 2010, putting more than 50 people to work. Demolition of that facility occurred in July, with large‐scale excavation beginning in August. The area also received $6 million in Recovery Act funds to be used for remedial design activities associated with the remainder of construction work necessary at the overall Welsbach & General Gas Mantle site. These funds will be spent by December 2010.
Posted by Linda H on 10:40:00 PM
In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania SEPTA is renovating two eighty‐year‐old subway stations, Girard and Spring Garden, using $25 million in Recovery Act funds – their largest Recovery Act project.
Together, these projects represent the first modernization for the stations since original construction in the late 1920’s. The work includes new elevators, stairs, cashier lines, and concrete restoration, and will also include lighting, signage and fire alarm systems. The two stations are the busiest stations on the Broad Street Subway, and combined, serve more than 10,000 riders each day.
The revitalized stations will help fuel development on North Broad Street. More than 200 jobs are being created by the project, including nearly 100 in construction, and more than 100 support positions with contractors and suppliers.
Posted by Linda H on 10:33:00 PM
The Lower Silver Creek Recovery Act project will support an estimated 400 jobs in San Jose, California. Flood control work has already been completed on the first stretch of the project, an area that extends from Lake Cunningham west to downtown San Jose. Through $19 million in support of Recovery Act funding, the project will grow to include an additional two‐and‐a‐half mile stretch of the creek.
When complete, this project will protect from flooding nearly 16,000 people, as well as businesses, schools, major highways, bridges and other infrastructure used by 250,000 people. The project will also improve wetlands and wildlife habitat.
Posted by Linda H on 10:28:00 PM
The Department of Defense is using $24.9 million of Recovery Act funds to construct a new 236,234 square foot Joint Forces Headquarters building in Raleigh, North Carolina. This will relieve space shortfalls for National Guard command sections.
This facility will also consolidate the Army National Guard, the Air National Guard, the State Emergency Operations Center, the North Carolina Department of Transportation Emergency Operations Center, and the State Highway Patrol Command. In addition, 122 jobs have been supported through the construction of this new facility. The estimated completion date for this project is June 2011.
Posted by Linda H on 10:23:00 PM
Local, state and federal officials broke ground May 18, 2009 at the largest green infrastructure project in the State of Kansas to be funded by Recovery Act – an $18 million series of improvements to Johnson County’s Douglas L. Smith Middle Basin Treatment Plant.
The Recovery Act is expected to lead to 270 jobs, result in almost $600,000 in annual costs savings for utility rate payers and reduce annual green‐ house gas emissions by more than 9,700 metric tons. Improvements include construction of a new anaerobic digester, a fats, oils and grease station to more efficiently treat greases and oils from restaurants and industries, and a cogeneration system to produce virtually all of the plant’s annual operating energy from captured biogases.
The project is expected to be completed by March 2011.
Posted by Linda H on 10:15:00 PM
The Department of Defense is using $14.9 million in Recovery Act funds to build new housing facilities for single service members. A dormitory is being constructed at Keesler AFB, Mississippi that will contain approximately 144 room and two older existing dormitories will be demolished.
As of June 30, 2010, 24 jobs had been reported as supported by Recovery Act funds, and construction continues.
Posted by Linda H on 10:13:00 PM
Palmetto Health Council (PHC) received $8.2 million to both increase and expand delivery of primary health care services and to make capital improvements.
These efforts are occurring in an economically depressed rural region in central Georgia and 19 jobs have been created to support the activities. To date, creation and expansion of three delivery sites has resulted in 2,065 total new patients being served, of which 1,687 were uninsured. These efforts included dental facility expansion and creation of pharmacy services where none previously existed.
In addition, a groundbreaking was held Aug. 31 to begin construction of a 21,300 square foot primary care facility in Palmetto, GA. A local construction company has been secured and will utilize locally supplied building materials and local labor. PHC plans to hire an additional three medical employees to serve 3,800 patients in this new facility.
Posted by Linda H on 6:49:00 PM
Tiara Yachts makes fiber composite structures for boats. Now the Holland, Michigan‐based company is transforming part of its factory and using its 30 years of expertise in composites to establish a new company ‐ Energetx Composites ‐ that will produce commercial‐sized wind turbine blades.
The Recovery Act provided Ener‐ getx with a $1.9 million 48C Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit as well as $3.5 million through the Department of Energy’s State Energy Program. The $7 million project will retool portions of Tiara's existing plant to manufacture utility‐scale wind turbine blades. Energetx has already begun hiring more employees and training them for wind blade manufacturing. The company currently has 23 employees but expects to grow and add more than 140 additional jobs by the summer of 2011.
Posted by Linda H on 6:45:00 PM
Coulomb Technologies is based in San Jose, California‐based company that manufactures electric vehicle charging stations. Based in the Bay Area in Campbell, California, the company manufactures the charging stations at CTS in San José, California.
Coulomb is launching ChargePoint America, a $37 million investment in the deployment of electric vehicle charging stations. This nationwide program covers nine cities in six states and the District of Columbia and will install 4,600 stations in total.
Posted by Linda H on 6:43:00 PM
ION HoldCo, LLC was awarded $39.7 million in Recovery Act Funds to implement a rural broadband infrastructure project. ION will build 10 new segments of fiber optic middle mile broadband infrastruc‐ ture serving more than 70 rural communities in upstate New York and parts of Pennsylvania and Vermont.
The project will enable wired and wireless last mile service providers to make broadband more readily available to 250,000 households and 38,000 businesses, and extend middle mile infrastruc‐ ture to low‐income rural areas with higher than average unemployment. This project will go a long way toward making American businesses more competitive, and connecting Americans to the opportunities and resources available with broadband.
Posted by Linda H on 6:37:00 PM
Oregon Community Health Information Network, one of the nation’s cutting edge health information technology and service organizations, has established the o‐Health Information Technology Extension Center (o‐HITEC) to improve use of electronic health records (EHR) by medical providers across the state.
In Oregon, over 65 percent of providers already use an EHR system, and the Oregon Community Health Information Network currently supports an advanced level of health information exchange. O‐HITEC will leverage this experience and the $13.2 million in Recovery Act Funds to help providers across the state supplement their current technology, implement new technology and focus on advanced tools to improve patient outcomes.
Oregon will serve as a model of how advanced use of health information technology can be leveraged to reduce costs and improve patient satisfaction and clinical outcomes. This Recovery Act grant will employ Oregonians in highly skilled jobs to create a more effective and efficient health care system.
Posted by Linda H on 6:29:00 PM
During the summer of 2010, three major construction projects funded by the Recovery Act and totaling $29.1 million are underway at Ellis Island in New York Harbor. A $20.9 million project will complete the stabilization of over 6,700 feet of seawall that surrounds and protects Ellis Island.
Built in various phases from 1913 to 1934, recent surface and marine surveys verified that portions of the walls are seriously deteriorated. A $1.5 million project will provide enhanced power and communications infrastructure for both Liberty and Ellis Islands. These enhancements will in turn enable the installation of improved significant cultural resources and the 3.7 million annual visitors are safe.
A third project for $6.7 million will begin in mid‐June on the north side of Ellis Island to stabilize and remove hazardous materials from the 120,000 square foot Baggage and Dormitory Building built in 1908. The work will ensure the structure is stabilized from the elements and made safe enough for future exterior and interior rehabilitation and is estimated to create over 70 jobs.
Posted by Linda H on 6:22:00 PM
In Toledo, Ohio $3.4 million will be used to develop Englewood Senior Housing, a newly constructed senior mid‐rise community on Monroe Street in Toledo’s central city neighborhood. Toledo Community
Three unsightly, vacant commercial and residential structures, as well as a decaying parking lot, have been demolished to make room for a new 38 unit 3‐ story apartment building on an intimate 1.15‐acre site off this main neighborhood thoroughfare. The development proposal is an overdue solution to project co‐sponsor Toledo Community Development Corporation (TCDC’s) long‐held concerns about the increasing need for high‐quality, safe senior housing for the central city neighborhoods. The project is expected to be completed and turned over for lease up by the end of October.
Posted by Linda H on 6:19:00 PM
UQM Technologies, a developer of electric vehicle propulsion systems, is building a new electric vehicle propulsion plant that will be four times the size of their original facility.
UQM used a portion of its $45 million Recovery Act grant through the Department of Energy's Vehicle Technologies Program to pay for the $7.5 million facility in Longmont, Colorado. When the new facility is fully operational, it is expected to produce 80 propulsion systems a day. UQM will also be using Recovery Act funding to advance research and production of electric and hybrid‐electric vehicle propulsion systems.
The company expects to add 230 jobs by next year, growing its workforce from 70 to 300. Recently un‐ derway, the project reported supporting 9 jobs last quarter.
Posted by Linda H on 6:15:00 PM
The City of Naperville, Illinois was awarded an $11 million Smart Grid Investment Grant from the Department of Energy to deploy more than 57,000 smart meters and install the infrastructure and software necessary to support and integrate various smart grid functions and the two‐way flow of information between the utility and its customers.
The project will complete the automation of the city’s electric grid, providing automatic, computerized meter readings in real‐time, enabling streamlined customer billing and increased billing accuracy. The smart meters will provide residents and businesses more information about their energy use, allowing them to analyze and adjust their energy use patterns, save energy and manage their electric bills. The city estimates it will create over 70 jobs over the life of the project.
Posted by Linda H on 6:13:00 PM
EnerDel makes advanced lithium‐ion batteries for electric vehicles in Indiana. A $118 million Recovery Act grant is helping the company expand production at its current facilities in Noblesville and Indianapolis –as well as build a new facility in Mt. Comfort.
The grant has helped EnerDel support nearly 80 jobs through July 2010, and the company expects to grow from roughly 150 workers in the state today to over 1,400 by 2014. The company forecasts that exports will represent as much as 75 percent of near‐term sales. EnerDel has signed a contract with Norwegian carmaker Think and will be shipping batteries produced in Indiana to Europe within the month.
Posted by Linda H on 6:09:00 PM
As part of the Recovery Act’s commitment to helping American companies develop the best vehicle technologies in the world, Smith Electric in Kansas City, Missouri received a $32 million grant to build and deploy up to 510 all‐electric trucks.
Smith is selling trucks to Coca Cola Enterprises, AT&T, FritoLay and Staples, plus utilities Pacific Gas & Electric and Kansas City Power & Light. Smith and its customers will test vehicle performance in California, Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, and Texas.
According to Smith, they recently hired their 50th worker at the Kansas City facility, with plans to expand to 70 workers. At the project’s peak, Smith estimates it will support more than 220 direct and indirect jobs.
Posted by Linda H on 6:09:00 PM
NSF awarded $10 million to Columbia University, IRIS, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UNAVCO, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution to improve earthquake monitoring and advance our understanding of earthquakes, volcanoes, and other geological processes operating in a geologically active region off the coasts of northern California, Oregon, and Washington.
Research activities include upgrading GPS instruments on land, installing more on‐shore earthquake monitoring instruments, and deployment and recovery of 60 ocean‐bottom sensors for an integrated land and sea experiment to understand the threats posed in this important region.
Posted by Linda H on 5:58:00 PM
The Meridianville Volunteer Fire Department in Madison County, Alabama, received a $700,000 loan backed by Recovery funds to replace its small 20‐year‐old fire station with a larger and more centrally located facility.
The 25‐member volunteer fire department provides emergency fire and medical services to a rural community of 5,000. The new facility will provide adequate and secure storage for their existing fire trucks and equipment and provide a community room for first‐responder training and public education services for community residents. The new location will have room for expansion as the community's need for emergency services increase.
Posted by Linda H on 5:52:00 PM
In Waukegan, Illinois more than $18.5 million in Recovery Act funding is accelerating hazardous waste clean‐up action already underway at the Outboard Marine Corp (OMC) site that may have otherwise taken a decade to complete.
Funding also allowed for the demolition of an abandoned 625,000 square foot PCB‐ contaminated facility as well as removal of PCB‐contaminated soil and sediment. The cleanup efforts have put more than 40 people to work, and will leave a 60‐acre lakefront parcel pristine enough to be targeted for residential redevelopment.
Posted by Linda H on 5:48:00 PM
The city of Batesville, Arkansas is using $10 million of Recovery Act funds to replace the existing wastewater mains to their treatment facility with a 3,100 linear foot gravity sewer. The project will provide effective waste‐ water treatment and will save 62 percent of energy, or about 700,000 kW hours/year, over the minimum 40 year life of the tunnel.
Meanwhile, the project has also created over 40 jobs. This two phase project which began in February 2010 continues on schedule.
Posted by Linda H on 5:43:00 PM
The reforms that President Obama signed into law include historic investments to make education more affordable, and deliver on another key campaign promise. The legislation:
- Ends subsidies to special-interest private lending companies
- Doubles funding for Pell Grants to help more students afford a college education
- Will cap a graduate’s annual student loan repayments at 10 percent of his or her income
- Helps an additional 5 million Americans earn degrees and certificates over the next decade, by revitalizing programming at our nation's community colleges
Posted by Linda H on 5:34:00 PM
The New Bedford Harbor Superfund site encompasses 18,000 acres of urban estuary stretching from the upper Acushnet River into Buzzards Bay. In 2009, EPA announced that $30 million in new Recovery Act funding would be used to accelerate the hazardous waste clean‐up already underway at the site.
The swift allocation of Recovery Act funds has helped spur new jobs and economic opportunities in Massachusetts and is accelerating the pace of the harbor cleanup that was scheduled to take almost four decades. The Recovery Act funding could more than triple the amount of PCB‐ contaminated sediment removed compared to recent years. The progress anticipated this year will significantly expedite the timetable to return a clean harbor back to the community.
More than 100,000 people, individuals and families, live in the area and will directly benefit from the project acceleration. This project has created more than 80 jobs.
Posted by Linda H on 5:29:00 PM
The Pomeroy, an 87‐year old 9‐story brick building on the north side of Chicago, was closed in June 2006 because the aging mechanical systems were failing and the cost of on‐going repairs had become prohibitive. Recovery Act funding of $18.3 million will enable the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) to substantially rehabilitate the property and reconfigure the interior floor plans to create 104 new one‐bedroom apart‐ ments for senior citizen public housing.
The building will undergo a complete renovation including new mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, new elevators, new kitchen and bathroom cabinets, fixtures, and appliances. The Pomeroy Apartments project is part of CHA’s ambitious plan to facilitate transformational energy efficiency and “green” retrofits in order to substantively increase building efficiency and environmental performance of public housing properties and thereby reduce energy costs, generate resident and CHA energy savings, and reduce green house gas emissions attributable to energy consumption. The project will have a green (vegetated) roof which provides insulation for the building, reducing heat loss in winter and cooling costs in the summer.
73 workers will help with interior demolition, and 32 workers will help with various predevelopment activities.
Posted by Linda H on 5:25:00 PM
A $25 million Recovery Act grant will support the rehabilitation of the Historic Eads Bridge that spans the Mississippi River between Missouri and Illinois. With final engineering scheduled to be completed in the next few months and full construction beginning in spring 2011, this project is anticipated to create approximately 875 construction‐related jobs over the expected two‐year project life.
The Eads Bridge is a combined roadway and light rail bridge that was originally constructed in 1874 and is listed as a National Historic Landmark. This project provides much needed safety rehabilitation to the bridge superstructure and piers, extending the life of the bridge for several decades and bringing the bridge back to a state of good repair. The bridge serves as the backbone of the MetroLink Light Rail System, and this project would not be possible without Recovery Act funding.
Posted by Linda H on 5:19:00 PM
The Housing Authority of the City and County of Denver (DHA) received a 2009 Recovery Act grant award of $10 million for the construction of a $21 million tower for the Senior & Disabled to be known as 1099 Osage.
This 100‐unit public housing/ Low Income Housing Tax Credit Transit Oriented Development ten‐story building will utilize scarce, vacant in‐fill land located adjacent to an existing light rail station, achieving a density of 108 units per acre.
The building will maximize energy efficiency with a possible 50 percent reduction in energy consumption. A Photovoltaic system will offset 10 percent of electrical demand and a geothermal system will provide energy efficient heating and cooling. The building will be oriented to use passive solar/heating and cooling. The housing authority estimates that at least 50 construction/sub‐contracting construction jobs will be created.
Posted by Linda H on 5:12:00 PM
This $2 million Recovery Act project will provide for the renovation of approximately 8,184 square feet on the second floor of the Dublin VA Medical Center. The improvements will allow the function of the floor to change from an information technology administration space to an Inpatient Medical Ward. Upon project completion, thirteen beds of the present inpatient ward on 13B will be relocated across the corridor to 15B, a new thirteen bed inpatient ward.
Posted by Linda H on 5:03:00 PM
This Recovery Act project in Malden, Massachusetts has protected children and families living in older homes from lead paint and other health and safety hazards.
With $3 million in Recovery Act funding, the Malden Redevelopment Authority was able to retain 5 public service employees who otherwise would have been laid off, added 2 new full‐time Rehabilitation Specialist positions and provided additional job opportunities working on lead‐based paint hazard control projects for 35 contractor, labor, and trades positions. Due to the increased volume of construction work, an additional 6 full‐time labor positions have been added to the payrolls of local contractors.
Posted by Linda H on 4:53:00 PM
The Navassa Volunteer Fire Department in Brunswick County, North Carolina, received a $1.6 million grant in Recovery funds to replace its undersized 20‐year‐old prefab metal building with a larger fire station facility which meets all current codes and standards.
The new station will improve everyday service delivery in addition to providing adequate and secure space for their existing apparatus and equipment; the addition of sleeping quarters; a decontamination area; an isolated area for the breathing air system and turnout gear; a vehicle exhaust removal system and fire alarm and supression systems; and will also have enough room to serve as an emergency operations center and hurricane shelter during hurricanes.
The 23‐member volunteer fire department provides emergency fire and medical services to a rural community of 1,870. The construction on the facility will create an estimated 40 construction jobs for North Carolinians.
Posted by Linda H on 4:44:00 PM
The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is increasing at an alarming pace; the most recent reports estimate that an average of 1 in 110 children in the United States have an ASD. To address this serious public health challenge, the National Institutes of Health has awarded approximately $65 million in Recovery Act funds for innovative research that will lead to better ways to identify, treat and even prevent the disabling symptoms of ASD and to help improve the quality of life for people with an ASD and their families.
One exemplary study, led by Catherine Lord, Ph.D., of the University of Michigan, will improve methods for identifying children with an ASD. The goal of the project is to develop a screening interview that will be easier for health care professionals to use and can be administered in less time.
As a result, a wider range of healthcare professionals could identify children much more quickly and at a significantly reduced cost to families. Ultimately, the hope would be that children with an ASD would be diagnosed at an earlier age, and therefore, would benefit from earlier interventions to improve their long‐term outcomes.
Posted by Linda H on 4:40:00 PM
The Electric Power Board of Chattanooga, Tennessee received $111 million in Recovery Act Funds to upgrade the current electric system with smart grid technology, which will enable more efficient energy use and better service for customers, including reducing the length of outages.
The project will put a smart meter in all 170,000 households in the Tennessee network, in addition to completing fiber extension construction throughout the service area, automating sub‐transmission and distribution systems, and enabling customer systems that will provide consumers additional information about their energy use. The Electric Power Board has supported more than 80 jobs with Recovery Act funds.
Posted by Linda H on 1:07:00 PM
This $500,000 Recovery Act grant partnership at Crossroads Safehouse in Larimer County, Colorado is helping families in this rural area.
The program has provided a bilingual, invigorated coordinated community response of job skill and educational services and life‐saving transitional housing for families who have suffered from domestic violence.
The funding expanded the program – the only domestic violence shelter in Larimer County – from 15 units to 25 units. Without this funding, many of the battered women and their children who turn to Crossroads in this largely rural county would have had little option but to become homeless or go back to their abusers.
Recovery Act funding has been used to provide additional consulting and staff support at over 20 network institutions.
Visit the
Crossroads SafeHouse Website
Posted by Linda H on 8:58:00 AM
Rough Cut of 1 hour meeting of the Jobs Council, Obama, Immet, and several others disucss aspects of the econionomic recovery.
Please use these videos in whatever whay you feel is the most helpful.
Posted by Linda H on 8:47:00 AM
It's tough enough for an adult to lose a loved one to cancer. Imagine how devastating it is for a child. To support these children, Philadelphia Phillies pitching great Jamie Moyer and his wife Karen started Camp Erin, nationwide.
Camp Erin is weekend-long overnight camp designed for children and teens, ages 6 to 17, who are grieving the death of someone close to them. It is a traditional, fun, high-energy camp combined with grief education and emotional support. Camp Erin is offered at no charge to participants.
The Department of Energy has finalized a $43 million loan guarantee for Beacon Power Corporation's 20 megawatt innovative flywheel energy storage plant in Stephentown, New York. The plant will help improve the stability and reliability of the state's electric grid and Beacon estimates it will create 20 construction jobs in New York and 40 permanent jobs in Massachusetts.
Apple Needs to Make it in America
