Northampton only municipality in WMass invited into state fossil fuel-free building pilot program

The site of the affordable homes project Prospect Place is the former nursing home at 737 Bridge Road in Northampton.

The site of the affordable homes project Prospect Place is the former nursing home at 737 Bridge Road in Northampton. GAZETTE FILE PHOTO

Northampton  has been selected as the only community from western Massachusetts to participate in a state pilot program that would require all future construction and major renovations to be entirely free of fossil fuels. An example of a current project that meets that definition is Valley Community Development Corp.’s $30 million redevelopment of an old nursing home on Bridge Road into Prospect Place, a 60-unit affordable housing complex that will run on green energy.

Northampton has been selected as the only community from western Massachusetts to participate in a state pilot program that would require all future construction and major renovations to be entirely free of fossil fuels. An example of a current project that meets that definition is Valley Community Development Corp.’s $30 million redevelopment of an old nursing home on Bridge Road into Prospect Place, a 60-unit affordable housing complex that will run on green energy. STAFF PHOTO/CAROL LOLLIS

Northampton  plans to participate in a state pilot program that would require all future construction and major renovations to be entirely free of fossil fuels. An example of a current project that meets that definition is Valley Community Development Corp.’s Prospect Place, a 60-unit affordable housing complex on Bridge Road that will run on green energy.

Northampton plans to participate in a state pilot program that would require all future construction and major renovations to be entirely free of fossil fuels. An example of a current project that meets that definition is Valley Community Development Corp.’s Prospect Place, a 60-unit affordable housing complex on Bridge Road that will run on green energy. STAFF PHOTO/CAROL LOLLIS

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

Staff Writer

Published: 10-30-2024 4:15 PM

Modified: 10-31-2024 9:45 AM


NORTHAMPTON — The city has been selected as the 10th and final municipality in the state — and the only one in western Massachusetts — to participate in a state pilot program that would require all future construction and major renovations to be entirely free of fossil fuels.

Aptly titled the “Municipal Fossil Fuel Free Building Demonstration Program,” the pilot allows the selected municipalities to enact new zoning and building code ordinances or bylaws that would ban completely the use of fossil fuels for any new building construction or major renovation projects in an effort to achieve carbon neutrality.

“It’s a feather in the cap of city leaders who have been pushing the green cred, or the renewable and clean energy efforts in the city,” said Ben Weil, director of the Northampton’s Climate and Project Administration department. “Basically the state recognizes the city as being capable of rising to the challenge that the entire state is eventually going to have to get to.”

Although Weil said the state does not provide any additional support to communities selected in the program outside of some informal consulting, he added that being chosen for the program signified Northampton is on the forefront in terms of climate sustainability and environmental policy throughout the commonwealth.

In order to qualify, municipalities in the state need to demonstrate an ability to meet energy and infrastructure rules, meet requirements for affordable housing supply, and show community support for such an initiative.

All other municipalities in the program are located in affluent suburbs of Boston or on Martha’s Vineyard: Acton, Aquinnah, Brookline, Cambridge, Concord, Lincoln, Lexington, Newton and Arlington. Another Martha’s Vineyard town, West Tisbury, had been slated for the 10th slot but withdrew after not being able to meet the program’s affordable housing requirements. The city of Boston itself had considered joining the program, but ultimately decided not to apply.

“We have very different building stock than in eastern Mass. We don’t have a bunch of triple-deckers, we’re different,” Weil said. “So if you want to understand how [this program] is going to work when you’re renovating lots of housing and commercial space, you need regional diversity.”

Northampton beat out Somerville for the final slot. Department of Energy Resources Commissioner Elizabeth Mahony said in a statement that Northampton’s location in the western part of the commonwealth contributed to the decision to include it in the program.

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“Regional equity is a top priority for the Healey-Driscoll administration,” said Mahony. “Choosing between two communities on the cutting edge of climate innovation was challenging, and we want to thank Somerville for its bold climate leadership.”

In addition, Northampton is the only community selected that uses National Grid for electric utilities. All other communities included use Eversource, according to the energy resources department. That distinction can also provide valuable knowledge to the state on how different utility companies will be able to handle the switch to more sustainable powering and heating of homes.

“If Eversource is gaining all of this experience in supplying what can be a higher electrical load, National Grid also needs to gain experience,” Weil said. “We have a peak in the summer right now, due to cooling usage on the electrical system. But as we add [electrical] heating, we might find we have a second peak in the winter on cold mornings.”

Specialized building code

The Northampton City Council passed a specialized building code last year that did not ban the future use of fossil fuels completely, but did require that any new building using fossil fuels include on-site solar installations and wiring that would enable the building to switch to being all-electric at a future date.

Several new affordable housing developments, such as three homes built on Burts Pit Road by Habitat for Humanity, already incorporate fossil fuel-free infrastructure, using solar-powered heat pumps to generate power. Additionally, a former nursing home on Bridge Road being redeveloped by Valley Community Development into a 60-unit affordable housing complex called Prospect Place will run entirely on green energy.

Now that Northampton has been selected to participate in the program, the City Council has 90 days to pass an ordinance adopting the new building rules for it to take effect. A draft ordinance by Ward 7’s Rachel Maiore and Ward 5’s Alex Jarrett that would put the new rules in motion has been in the works for over a year in anticipation of the city’s enrollment in the program, and is expected to be introduced very soon.

“It’s quite a stroke of luck we were chosen,” Maiore said. “It’s a lot of responsibility, so it’s really flexing our leadership both in western Mass. and across the state.”

The new regulations from the program originate from the Act Driving Clean Energy and Offshore Wind, which was signed into law by former Gov. Charlie Baker in 2022. The state has set out to achieve a goal of complete carbon neutrality by the year 2050, with Northampton setting an even more ambitious goal of carbon neutrality by the year 2030. Buildings are responsible for about 35% of greenhouse gas emissions in Massachusetts, making them the second-largest source behind the transportation sector, according to the Healey administration’s climate report card.

“This program builds on our community and the state’s commitments to climate action,” said Northampton Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra in a statement announcing the city’s selection in the program. “We are ready to share our experiences and learn alongside other pioneering cities as we all work toward a greener, renewable commonwealth.”

Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.