The Board of Selectmen will hold a Public Hearing at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, September 27, 2011 in the Charles River Conference Room of the Public Services Administration Building at 500 Dedham Avenue.

The Green Communities Study Committee has recommended to the Board of Selectmen that the Town adopt the Stretch Code as part of its endeavor to become a Green Community.   The Stretch code is an energy saving modification to the building code.  The Board of Selectmen invites all residents and interested parties to provide input at this meeting.

The Public Hearing is an important opportunity for Needham residents to express their support for becoming a Green Community. The Selectmen will weigh this input when they discuss becoming a Green Community at one of their upcoming meetings.

Following the Selectmen’sr discussions, the final steps to becoming a Green Community are:

• An affirmative vote by the Board of Selectmen to put the Stretch Code on the warrant for the November Town Meeting. (This would likely be followed by a vote on recommending adoption of the Stretch Code to Town Meeting.)
• An vote by Town Meeting to adopt the Stretch Energy Code.
• An affirmative vote by the Selectmen to apply for Green Community status (this could be done before or after the Town Meeting vote).
• Submission of the Green Community application by the Town Manager to the Commonwealth’s Green Communities Division.

Upon being designated a Green Community, Needham will be eligible for a grant from the Green Communities program. More importantly, the Town will have set itself on the path to reducing energy use, saving money and becoming a more sustainable community. Needham would join 74 other Massachusetts cities and towns encompassing over 50% of the state’s population.

Information on the Stretch Code and other Green Communities qualifications can be found on the Town’s website at www.needhamma.gov/gcsc.

Public comments may also be directed to the Board of Selectmen, c/o Public Services Administration Building, 500 Dedham Avenue, Needham, MA or scincotta@needhamma.gov.