It’s been a whirlwind couple of days for the team at Regeneration Park.  From the first phone call from Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter’s office to the visit that just took place from US Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis, we haven’t stopped until right now. And, all we can say is “Wow!”

Regen Park on WMUR

If you haven’t seen the video above on WMUR-9 or in the Portsmouth Herald or on the front page of Foster’s or even in the Boston Globe, the Park has gotten some high-profile visitors this past week.

Andrew Kellar of Simply Green Biofuels, Shannon Althier of TMS Architects, and Tim Russell of TR Russell Builders showed Secretary Solis and Congresswoman Shea-Porter around the site.  The two were impressed with the scope of the project, taking special note of the basketball flooring as it goes in! The build-out is going well, and having the two politicians on site was really a remarkable experience. Hearing them articulate the vision of Regeneration Park, to be a showcase for the green economy, really sparks a fire for us to bring this project to reality even further. The Secretary addressed the crowd and said that she is always asked by people “Where at the green jobs in my community?” And, she says that places like Regeneration Park are “where.”

As part of the visit, we also unveiled our intention to have the largest array of solar thermal and photovoltaic panels on a privately owned building in the state of New Hampshire.  Our partners for the solar portion of the project were also present and had the opportunity to interact with the Secretary and Congresswoman as well!

If you want to see the visit as it happened, check out this search on Twitter to see the live updates from Simply Green and Regeneration Park: #DOLvisitsRegen

And, check back next week for pictures from the visit!

Now that permitting is in place and the designs are finalized. Things are really starting to cook on site.  Contractors, lead by TR Russell Builders, are making huge strides in the building already.  The shape is already starting to take form, and we’re all excited to see our spaces come to life.

And, don’t forget to read the paper and check back by the end of the week for our visitor!

We just unloaded pallet after pallet of the original floor for Cobo Arena, the home of the Detroit Pistons from 1961-1978, and it’s going to make up the floor for the largest office suite in Regeneration Park. On the same floor that Dave Bing and Bob Lanier used to hold court, we’ll be putting state-of-the-art office equipment.

A sample of the court floor

It’s amazing to think that the court has been waiting to find use for almost 40 years since it was first removed. We’re happy it has now found it’s home at Regeneration Park!

Regeneration Park, the brainchild of Simply Green Biofuels, is slated to be one of the first facilities of its kind in the area, a Zero Energy Building (ZEB) that strives to consume zero net energy and emit zero net carbon.

The ambitious project will bring together the world of business with an eco-friendly mind-set involving solar panels and energy-use monitoring, all set against the backdrop of the busy corridor connecting Portsmouth and the southern New Hampshire Seacoast. [...]

He said the name, Regeneration Park, sprang out of a desire to reuse as much material from the building as possible, either through windows, doors and insulation that will be reused on site or by sending them off to be recycled. Tim Russell of T.R. Russell Builders, who was working in the building during the recent tour, estimated about 90 percent of the material by volume was recycled, with wallboard being one of the few materials that could not be reused or recycled. [...]

The company is well on its way, but Kellar said he wants to see the building reach the lofty goals set for it. Who they are working with will go a long way toward that goal, he said.

“We’re always looking for creative proposals,” he said. “We’re looking for (contractors and tenants) to blow our socks off.”

Think you might be one of those contractors or tenants? Be sure to contact us, and reserve your spot today.