A non-profit corporation has been formed to help cities, counties and agencies in the Birmingham area successfully pursue their fair share of millions of dollars in grant money for “green” energy, construction and public works projects expected to be made available soon in President Obama’s economic stimulus package. A group of elected officials from the area, including Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford and Hoover Mayor Tony Petelos, announced the formation of the Alabama Green Initiative, Inc. (AGI) at a press conference at Aldridge Botanical Gardens in Hoover on Thursday, Jan. 29.
Langford will serve as AGI chairman and Petelos as vice-chairman. The other officers are Bessemer Mayor Ed May, secretary, and Fultondale Mayor Jim Lowery, treasurer. Other board members include Jefferson County Commissioner William Bell, Homewood City Council member David Hooks and Hoover City Council President Gary Ivey. According to the AGI’s mission statement, EnviroSource, a local environmental consulting firm, will provide the organization and its members with planning, educational, training and administrative services.
Obama’s stimulus bill, known as the American Economy Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will give funding preference to projects that are both “green” and “shovel ready” within 120 days. The AGI will work with members to shape their proposals and make them “as ‘green’ as possible,” the statement says. Members will also be able to use the services of grant writers with experience in obtaining state and federal money.
Any municipality or municipal agency in the seven-county Birmingham-Hoover metropolitan area is eligible to join the AGI as long as they pay dues amounting to $1.00 per resident per year based on the 2000 census. Birmingham, Hoover and Jefferson County will have their dues capped at $50,000 per year. Bessemer’s dues are capped at $25,000 per year. Cities with fewer than 2,000 people will pay $1,500 per year. Members must also adopt what the mission statement refers to as a “green resolution” and take part in a non-binding agreement to become “sustainable” cities or counties by 2014, as defined by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.
The mission statement lists ambitious goals for the AGI, including “education of the general public regarding sustainable energy, advocacy for policy that will lead to a sustainable energy future, and removal of barriers to economic development, so our sustainable energy sector can grow.”
Langford will serve as AGI chairman and Petelos as vice-chairman. The other officers are Bessemer Mayor Ed May, secretary, and Fultondale Mayor Jim Lowery, treasurer. Other board members include Jefferson County Commissioner William Bell, Homewood City Council member David Hooks and Hoover City Council President Gary Ivey. According to the AGI’s mission statement, EnviroSource, a local environmental consulting firm, will provide the organization and its members with planning, educational, training and administrative services.
Obama’s stimulus bill, known as the American Economy Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will give funding preference to projects that are both “green” and “shovel ready” within 120 days. The AGI will work with members to shape their proposals and make them “as ‘green’ as possible,” the statement says. Members will also be able to use the services of grant writers with experience in obtaining state and federal money.
Any municipality or municipal agency in the seven-county Birmingham-Hoover metropolitan area is eligible to join the AGI as long as they pay dues amounting to $1.00 per resident per year based on the 2000 census. Birmingham, Hoover and Jefferson County will have their dues capped at $50,000 per year. Bessemer’s dues are capped at $25,000 per year. Cities with fewer than 2,000 people will pay $1,500 per year. Members must also adopt what the mission statement refers to as a “green resolution” and take part in a non-binding agreement to become “sustainable” cities or counties by 2014, as defined by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.
The mission statement lists ambitious goals for the AGI, including “education of the general public regarding sustainable energy, advocacy for policy that will lead to a sustainable energy future, and removal of barriers to economic development, so our sustainable energy sector can grow.”
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