Putnam Block Update ~ Financing Deal Done & Construction Begins

HOLLY PELCZYNSKI – BENNINGTON BANNER Robert Stevens, Owner of M&S Construction offers congratulatory remarks at the celebration of the closing of the Putnam deal.

S&A is happy to congratulate M&S Development, all the organizations & community members responsible for reaching a huge milestone to revitalize downtown Bennington, VT.

For more information about the Putnam Block Redevelopment project visit  :

https://www.reformer.com/stories/putnam-block-financing-deal-done-construction-begins,577216

Join Our Team ~ Open Position at S&A

Licensed Project Architect/Project Manager

S&A is seeking an energetic, licensed architect to join our growing team at our Brattleboro, Vermont office.  This full time position will research, design, and lead the construction documents preparation that comply with applicable building codes, building practices, and standards.

https://www.stevens-assoc.com/employment-opportunities/

 

2019 Massachusetts Association of Planning Directors Conference

 

S&A Team Leader, Mark Westa, ASLA  joins Peter Flinker, Principal of Dodson & Flinker and Ted Brovitz, Founder of Brovitz Community Planning & Design for the 2019 Massachusetts Association of Planning Directors Conference.

 

During the Master Planning and Implementation Strategies to Help Downtown and Village Centers Get Ready for the New Economy session,  Mark will focus on how designers and developers can overcome the economic barriers to mixed-use downtown projects through innovative financing strategies, including the use of historic or New Market tax credits and “community-supported development.

For more details on this event, visit: https://www.planning.org/events/activity/9177284/

 

VIM – Bennington’s Putnam Block, Revitalizing the Past for the Future

Working to revitalize 4 acres and 3 historic buildings in a downtown National Historic District is an extraordinary undertaking. Learn more about this project and how S&A, M&S Development and a dedicated group of organizations are transforming a community by reading, “Bennington’s Putnam Block, Revitalizing the Past for the Future” in Vermont Innovator Magazine – Spring 2019 issue.
 

S&A Welcomes Katie Stuart-Buckley to the M&S Team

S&A welcomes Katie Stuart-Buckley to the M&S Development team. As Development Director, Katie will lead M&S to provide real estate development, capital sourcing, and deal-structuring services to projects which benefit economically challenged communities.  Her years of dedication to the region and the State of Vermont are evident through her service as a board member with the Preservation Trust of Vermont, Vermont Downtown Development Board, Vermont Housing Finance Agency, Windham Regional Commission, Vermont Disaster Recovery Fund, and the Friends of Algiers Village.

Prior to her appointment by the Governor as Commissioner of Housing & Community Development in the Agency of Commerce & Community Development for the State of Vermont, Katie held leadership roles involving municipal management and finance, sensitive redevelopment of historic buildings for adaptive reuse, non-profit affordable housing, and community and economic development.

The S&A staff is excited to collaborate with Katie and provide a suite of services to support transformative downtown projects and community revitalization.  To learn more visit: M&S Development

 

2019 Trendsetters Award

Congratulations to Serenity Wolf, PE and Civil Team Leader at S&A for being selected as one of the 2019 Trendsetters for Brattleboro and the Monadnock region. Serenity is being recognized with this award for her valuable contribution within the workplace and community.

For more information about this award and the other recognized Trendsetters visit: The Business Journal of Greater Keene

 

Snow Block Project Update

Snow Block Project Update – It’s underway and there’s a lot happening! S&A Engineers, Serenity Wolf, PE and Andrea Ameden, EI met with ReArch, construction manager and site contractor, Bernie LaRock & Son for water testing of the main and sprinkler lines. In addition, footings and foundation walls were being formed by Valley Concrete.

For more information about this project visit: https://www.stevens-as soc.com/portfolio/snow-block/

Vermont Statewide Housing Conference 2018

Stevens & Associates and M&S Development are looking forward to presenting at the Vermont Statewide Housing Conference 2018.

On November 14th, look for Jillian Tomaselli, AIA and Martha Ratcliffe to speak during the Small Living Spaces-Municipal and Developer Considerations workshop.  Bob Stevens, PE will present during the case study-oriented workshop, Economic Development.  Trends, living spaces, and economic tools will be addressed during these sessions.

Join us and register HERE.

Groundbreaking News on Snow Block

Stevens & Associates is excited to provide architectural and engineering services for another great Windham & Windsor Housing Trust project. The Snow Block will offer affordable housing and replace a vacant lot adding to the streetscape and extending the downtown fabric on Flat Street. The design will respect the distinct architectural form of Brattleboro’s downtown district.
For more information, please read the October 24th article in the Brattleboro Reformer. https://lnkd.in/eiyAEEi?

Bob Stevens Presented at the Radically Rural Summit

Bob Stevens discussed the feasibility of restoring downtown historic buildings during the Radically Rural Summit in Keene, NH

For more information about this event, read the following article from the Keene Sentinel.  https://www.sentinelsource.com/news/local/for-radically-rural-keene-transformed-into-a-conference-center/article_e7a9bbd3-c026-53c8-80be-d5dc096dc995.html

SNEAPA 2018 Conference

 

Bob Stevens, PE and Craig Miskovich, Esq. will present – “Beating the Odds: Overcoming the Obstacles that Face Economically Challenged Downtown Mixed-Use Projects” at the Southern New England American Planning Association Conference in Hartford, CT on Oct. 19th.

This session will explore which metrics to measure and how to show the value of a project. It also will delve into unique strategies to leverage that value into community support and funding sources.

Please join them for this two-day conference of high quality, hands-on and interactive sessions, mobile workshops, planning law and planning ethics presentations, and member networking.

For more information visit SNEAPA.

 

 

The Radically Rural Summit – Sept. 27-28

Bob Stevens is looking forward to the Radically Rural Summit in Keene, NH on Sept. 27th & 28th.  He will join rural leaders, founders, and trailblazers as they come together for a two-day summit to learn, connect, collaborate, and lead change to create vibrant and robust rural communities.

This event features five program tracks including three programs per track over the course of two days, as well as keynote opening and closing speeches, and the popular CONNECT event on Thursday night.  As a panelist for the Historic Buildings as a Downtown Catalyst for Vibrancy session, Bob will focus on the Putnam Block Revitalization project, Bennington, VT.

For more information about this event, click HERE.

“Making It Happen” – VT Rural Summit18

Join Bob Stevens and register for “Making It Happen!” Local Leadership for the Future of Vermont Communities on Oct. 1st at Castleton University.  Vermont communities thrive with local leaders getting big things done – share success stories, gain new skills, and think together about supporting strong leaders across Vermont.
For more information visit: https://www.vtrural.org/Summit18

Great River Terrace – Grand Opening

Congratulations to Windham Windsor Housing Trust and everyone involved in the Great River Terrace ‘neighborhood’ project located in north Brattleboro. S&A is grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the first permanent supportive housing project in southern Vermont.

To learn more about WWHT and this project visit: http://www.w-wht.org/ and https://www.reformer.com/…/great-river-grand-opening-set-fo…

 

 

S&A welcomes Andrea Ameden, EI to the Civil Engineering Team as an Associate Engineer.

Andrea Ameden ~ As witness to the destruction that Hurricane Irene inflicted on roadway and bridge infrastructure in her hometown of Bondville, Vermont, Andrea was motivated to pursue a career in civil engineering beginning by earning a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering with a minor in Mathematics from the University of Vermont. Her studies focused on the structural analysis of steel, timber, reinforced concrete, and river engineering hydraulics and design practices. Andrea’s senior year capstone project involved designing a pedestrian bridge to cross the Battenkill River and connect two ends of the Riverwalk trail. From this, she developed strong communication skills while coordinating client and user wants balanced with the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources regulations.  In addition to her studies, Andrea was President of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) – UVM Student Chapter, as well as a dedicated volunteer for the UVM Living-Learning Program serving Chittenden County. Andrea’s internships provided significant experience with data collection and synthesis producing extensive documents on the research of water pollutants, stormwater infrastructure conditions, and traffic count studies.  She is enthusiastic to join the S&A team, which encourages collaboration, innovation, professional development, and community involvement.

 

S&A welcomes Mark Westa, ASLA as Team Leader  to the Landscape Architecture Team.

Mark has over 30 years of experience in landscape architecture, with a focus on creating vibrant, functional and livable places.  He has substantial work experience in the areas of community planning, campus planning, and urban design – as well as the design and construction of streets, plazas and parks. Mark earned degrees in landscape architecture from Cornell University and Harvard University.

As a landscape architect in Saratoga Springs and Buffalo, NY, Mark lead projects ranging from regional planning to campus planning to detailed site design and construction administration. Most recently he was a faculty member in the Program of Landscape Architecture at the University of Connecticut, where he taught courses in urban planning, site design, site construction and computer applications.  While at UConn, Mark also spent time working for the Office of University Planning, Design and Construction managing several important planning studies related to campus function and appearance as well as the site design and construction of critical projects in the campus core.