St. Charles, Maryland to Become International Model Green City
November 30 2009 - 12:15PM
PR Newswire (US)
ST. CHARLES, Md., Nov. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- American
Community Properties Trust (ACPT) (NYSE Amex: APO) launched an
initiative today that will make St. Charles, Maryland, its flagship
9,100 acre planned community in Charles County, the most
comprehensive smart green community development project in the
United States today. The project includes 4,000 undeveloped acres
in the planned community, as well as retrofitting more than 12,000
existing homes and four million square feet of existing commercial
space in St. Charles. "Our vision is to make St. Charles the
international model for 21st century smart green and growing
communities," said Steve Griessel, CEO of the Maryland-based land
development and property management company. "The transformational
effect that will occur from our efforts will double St. Charles in
size but actually lower today's carbon footprint and water usage
for the community. This transformation will enable 40 percent of
Charles County's population to live on approximately 2 percent of
its land mass, making St. Charles truly a smart, green, and growing
community," said Griessel. Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley
attended the launch event. "In Maryland, we are focused on New
Ideas for New Jobs - connecting the challenges and opportunities of
a workforce that leads in science, security and skills. Our goal is
for St. Charles to serve as a model of a 21st century city - a
green, healthy city that also has a viable, thriving economy, and a
city that truly embodies the deep connection between healing our
planet and creating a strong economy and good-paying jobs for
generations of Marylanders to come," said Governor O'Malley. "It is
an honor to be here today in the great city of St. Charles, with
ACPT, to announce the creation of a Green City. As part of the
innovative Green City initiative, St. Charles will represent a
model for cities around the world, making vital connections between
the creation of new jobs and a thriving economy, and the health of
our planet." Griessel outlined a plan that will include: --
Dedicating the balance of 4,000 acres of fully entitled land zoned
for 11,000 new homes and over 5 million square feet of commercial,
schools and community centers to be a smart green and growing
community. -- Undertaking a massive retrofitting program for the
existing businesses and nearly 40,000 residents to enhance energy
and water efficiency. -- Creating 20,000 jobs through a Green Jobs
Opportunity Zone, including 1,000 new jobs in the next 3 years
towards of Maryland's goal to create 100,000 green jobs statewide .
-- Designing and building desirable, quality homes, apartments and
commercial buildings that cost less and perform better. -- Making
St. Charles an international living laboratory for new
technologies, products and services and sharing the results of
programs with the world. -- Working with universities and colleges
to create a green campus, research and development park, and
incubator. -- Building the largest combination of clean energy
infrastructure in the United States, including a 640 megawatt
natural gas powered power plant, a 75-acre solar farm generating 10
megawatts, geothermal well fields for heating and cooling
buildings, and a biomass gasification technology plant potentially
incorporating methane from the Charles County landfill to produce
additional renewable electricity. To make the project a reality,
Mr. Griessel announced memorandums of understanding that ACPT has
with the Charles County Government, SMECO, the College of Southern
Maryland, and local and national businesses. Mr. Griessel announced
several initiatives that will be taking place as the "green city"
project gets underway, including: -- Competitive Power Ventures
(CPV), a Maryland based firm, has agreed to purchase land to
construct a 75-acre 10-megawatt solar farm in St. Charles, the
largest in the mid-Atlantic region. -- With IBM, ACPT will be
seeking to create a common technology platform for the entire
community that enables greater productivity, higher rates of
conservation, improved public safety, and creates a greater sense
of community. -- ACPT will develop its next neighborhood, a
625-mixed-unit community called Homefield, according to LEED
standards for neighborhood design, and all homes, townhomes and
apartments in the neighborhood will be built to LEED specifications
as well. (LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a
rating system for green building and development designed by the
United States Green Building Council (USGBC). -- The Southern
Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) has requested Maryland Public
Service Commission approval to install and test 1,000 smart meters
at existing homes and businesses in St. Charles. In addition, SMECO
and St. Charles have begun installing programmable thermostats,
part of what it calls its Cool Sentry program, at up to 2,500
apartments in St. Charles. The program helps the electricity
company manage energy loads during peak demand periods in the
summer. ACPT and SMECO have agreed to work jointly to market these
and other energy saving programs to homes, businesses, and
homebuilders in St. Charles. -- ACPT will donate 98 acres in St.
Charles to the Charles County Public Schools, for use for the
county's next high school. The school will be a LEED certified
building. -- ACPT will develop a summer farmer's market and other
programs in conjunction with the Southern Maryland Agricultural
Development Commission. "This is a great start, but there is so
much more we will be doing," said Griessel. "With SMECO, we are
testing LED lighting technology in our new community, Gleneagles.
With the College of Southern Maryland, we will be working jointly
to promote the Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)
program. Charles County Public Schools is going to build a LEED
certified high school on 98 acres we have donated. The Southern
Maryland Agricultural Development Commission is helping us bring
farmers markets, community gardens, and agricultural education
programs to the green city. And we will be leading this effort in
our future headquarters, which is going to be a LEED gold interior
certified building," said Griessel. For additional information,
please visit http://www.stcharlesgreen.com/ DATASOURCE: American
Community Properties Trust CONTACT: Tim Ayers, +1-202-422-5048, ,
or Heathere Evans-Kennan, +1-703-875-8969, , both for American
Community Properties Trust Web Site: http://www.acptrust.com/
http://www.stcharlesgreen.com/
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