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Eversource considers Worcester for renewable energy project

VEER MUDAMBI

Imagine a future where you don’t need natural gas in and around your home … yes, that explosive substance where combustion is necessary for use, which decreases indoor air quality, which is associated with childhood asthma and other respiratory diseases, and suffocates trees as it leaks into the ground.

Well, that future may be closer than you think.

The fact that Worcester has had more than its fair share of gas leaks is not up for debate. Dominic Nicholas, director of Home Energy Efficiency Team or HEET, shared data extracted directly from the gas utility’s most recently available quarterly leak inventory reports (Q3 — ending Sept 2020) showing that the city had 498 leaks of which only 115 were repaired. That is far more than other towns in Worcester County — Leominster had 99, Southbridge had 53, Milford had 47, Shrewsbury had 38, Fitchburg had 4 and Gardner had 1. While these towns are much smaller than Worcester, it is still an order of magnitude difference.

This begs the question — why is Worcester so much worse? Mainly, it is the age of the infrastructure and the fact that the cast iron pipes were sealed with jute, or grass fiber, which is biodegradable and dried out over time, allowing the gas to leak out. In addition, it is possible the pipes themselves rusted and contributed to the problem. John Odell, director of the City Energy and Asset Management Division, said the City Council and city manager are well aware of the number of gas leaks, that the problem is real, and they have repeatedly called for EverSource to replace the problematic pipes.

Audrey Schulman, co-founder and co-executive director of HEET, questions the need to replace and/or repair. “Why replace that infrastructure in the ground with one that will not be needed past 2050? … We know that natural gas will not be needed past that point so let’s stop installing gas infrastructure and start installing what we need in the future that will be safer, lower cost, less explosive and more reliable.”

Odell agrees that the goal is to reach net zero by 2050, which includes cutting down on natural gas, but is wary of being too prescriptive. In fact, he would like to leave room to work with Eversource on projects that will help the city find out how to get to that goal.

He means projects like the Eversource Pilot Program called GeoMicroDistrict, a geothermal energy network created by ground source heat pumps. The GeoMicroDistrict, said Schulman, was first proposed to Eversource by HEET about three years ago, when they came up with the idea of networking many different buildings together, including those with different energy use.

“You can move what would be wasted energy around to the building that needs it,” in a form of energy sharing and load canceling. A state-wide study two years ago found that “any place that has gas systems currently can get almost all the heating and cooling done through a network of ground source heat pumps, but it may be challenging in densely populated areas.”

After the feasibility study, Eversource decided to try it out and the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities approved a pilot project of one segment, mandating that it include about 100 different units, both homes and businesses in urban areas. As part of the pilot, said Schulman, energy bills will be substantially lower for both heating and cooling — $5 a month for low-income users and $20 a month for others. The price has not been announced for businesses. Schulman feels that, “given what’s currently happening with the economy, it would be good to help people, who are in tough financial situations, stay warm.”

Nikki Bruno, an Eversource representative who has been communicating with HEET, said that the company is aiming to assemble a variety of pilot sites by February. At that point, they will need to place an update and implementation plan before the DPU. “We’re very interested in Worcester in terms of how it matches our mandates and recommendations from the DPU,” said Bruno. It would be an appropriate choice because Worcester is where people have been deeply impacted by the economic downturn and the COVID crisis, meeting one of the recommendations of the DPU for the site.

“It’s an incredible deal,” said Schulman, “all infrastructure will be paid for and it would be a way to showcase how to move off natural gas towards a lower emitting, more reliable and safer energy source that will work for tomorrow.” Besides being able to meet Gov. Baker’s 50% reduction in use of natural gas by 2030, the pilot would go on about three years with a view to a 10-year investment. Since Worcester is in Eversource gas territory, it would only be a case of choosing a neighborhood with a mix of different types of businesses along with homes.

Odell is aware that Eversource is looking for a pilot site here in Worcester — “they’ve asked if we have any candidates in mind.” He indicated that HEET and Mothers Out Front reached out to them about this opportunity over the summer of last year. While it can’t just be any place — it has to be urban and has to contain a mix of at least 100 homes and businesses, he explained that, “there’s no defined ratio but it’s part of their criteria in terms of determining where they land and the pilot site segment translates to about one street.” One of the factors is the dimension and age of the gas pipes in the area, which may have to be dug up at

A diagram of the geothermal network structure.

HEET

some point. He is hopeful and believes it is “highly probable because they think Worcester would be an excellent candidate, with a great deal of gas infrastructure.”

Schulman notes that while the upsides are incredible, a few implementation challenges do come to mind. The first is finding a variety of pilot sites, but she doesn’t think that would be insurmountable considering people should be competing to get such an incredible deal. Secondly, there will be an experimentation period, where the utility figures out how to balance the temperature across all the buildings, evaluating it and getting people to understand how to use it and trust it. She chuckles when she says, “our hope is that it will become like the internet where everybody wants it.”

Gaylen Moore of the Worcester chapter of MOF confirms that her organization is “excited and has been talking about the Eversource Pilot Program every chance we get.” Primarily, they have been trying to connect HEET with local decision makers and local advocates, who they advise on site selection. Moore is optimistic that Worcester is on the shortlist. “My impression is that Eversource has been interested in Worcester from the beginning,” she said.

The chosen pilot area would hopefully benefit a community that is otherwise under-served and has been impacted by a number of environmental problems. There are parts of Worcester with poor quality housing, many gas leaks and trees that have been poisoned by them. While there are several considerations as far as finding the right site, it is important, according to Moore, to make connections between people in the city who have that kind of information. She feels it “would be such a shame and a missed opportunity if Worcester didn’t take advantage of the chance to be part of the pilot.”

Moore reiterated that while they have met with William Akley, the head of Eversource Gas, “the project needs a champion in Worcester — someone who is actively looking to locate and identify the correct site,” but she is not sure who is going to lead the charge.

She is also optimistic that the GeoMicroDistrict pilot project would synergize with the Green Worcester Plan. “We’ve been talking to John Odell and the more we can get people across the city knowing about it, the better chance it will end up in Worcester.”

Odell, in turn, is hopeful as well. “This is definitely something that we can work into the GWP, which was conceptualized as a living plan.” Though the pilot was not initially in the GWP, it provides an excellent window into how a geothermal networked infrastructure could work in Worcester, and one of the goals of the GWP is to assist EverSource and the community in this effort.

He reiterated that the City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. and council are strong advocates for this and look forward to making Worcester one of the most sustainable mid-sized cities in America.

Cliff Hakim’s ‘Walk in My Shoes’ follows the path of empathy and kindness

RICHARD DUCKETT

“If the shoe fits,” as the saying goes, “wear it.” Cliff Hakim’s new book, “Walk in My Shoes: The Path to Empathy and Compassion,” shows how kindness has been a good fit for the 35 people he interviews from different walks of life In terms of timeliness in today’s turbulence, it could be said to be great path for everyone to follow.

“The message of the book is kindness matters and compassion is a super-power,” said Hakim, who grew up in Shrewsbury and is a teacher, writer, counselor, executive coach, artisan/entrepreneur and artist who now lives in Arlington.

“The words are simple, but the work it takes just to go inside ourselves and look at someone kindly, with no agenda — I think these real gestures of how we treat one another add up to the health of society,” Hakim said during a recent telephone interview.

“Walk in My Shoes” came out in December and is published by Hakim’s own publishing company, WIMS Publishing. It is available at amazon.com.

The heart of “Walk in My Shoes” is based on the 35 people who Hakim interviewed, “ordinary people who are proof that we do still care for one another and have the will to make things better, that empathy and compassion are the glue of American society, and that kindness is a pillar of strength.”

They are all extraordinary in their own way, and the stories they have to tell are often very moving. Hakim calls them “storytellers” rather than interviewees.

Among the storytellers are Annette Rafferty, founder of Abby’s House, which provides affordable housing and a shelter for women and their children in Worcester, and James A. Welu, former director of the Worcester Art Museum.

“As I think of Annette’s accomplishments, I recall Maya Angelou’s words: ‘My wish for you is that you continue. Continue to

“Walk in My Shoes: The Path to Empathy and Compassion,” by Cliff Hakim.

ROBIN BROOKS

be who you are, to astonish a mean world with your acts of kindness,’” Hakim writes.

In the book Hakim also explores “the importance of compassionate leadership — people who could help us bring this quality to our larger organizations and institutions.”

Toward the end of its journey, “Walk in My Shoes” leads the reader to consider “Your Step.”

Over the steps of a long and varied career, Hakim has come to know a lot of people in a variety of settings.

Originally from from Maple Avenue in Shrewsbury, he graduated from Boston College with a degree in special education and taught for a while in California. A desire to return East was coupled with an interest in helping people in the world of business. He took a job as a headhunter and “realized what this was leading to was a great expansion of my creativity,” he said in an earlier interview. “I wanted to learn how to write and counsel others.”

Hakim went on to write his first book, “When You Lose Your Job,” and to found his career counseling firm. His best seller, “We Are All SelfEmployed: How to Take Control of Your Career,” was published in 1994 (Berrett-Koehler Publishers) and updated in 2003. He has delivered presentations around the country and written a newsletter.

Meanwhile, as an artisan, Hakim founded Inspired Stones, designing memorials using natural stone and reclaimed wood to tell a loved one’s story.

About three years ago Hakim said he started taking art courses at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and “drew flowers, seascapes, and somehow graduated to drawing shoes. Things started to come together in this serendipitous way.”

Hakim began thinking about people who exemplify empathy and kindness and “how is it to walk in their own shoes and what does it feel like to walk in the shoes of others?”

In his book he writes, “Shoes are an amazing metaphor. They provide a base of support and comfort, stability, and a sense of lightheartedness and grace that allow us to reach out to others. As each person showed me their favorite pair, we engaged in a wonderfully intimate dialogue about how we learn to care for ourselves and then extend that caring to others.”

Cliff Hakim

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The storytellers had received unusual requests.

“When I approached people for an interview I said, ‘Would you think of what your favorite shoes are and take pictures in different positions,’” Hakim said.

Instead of the storytellers having a head and shoulders photograph taken for the book, Hakim drew their shoes with an image of them respectively in each chapter.

“Rather than the face, I used the symbol of the shoe and expressing that in my way the soul of the person — (spelling it out) s-o-u-l and s-o-l-e. The book was really a footprint of the way they lived on the Earth and treated other people.”

The subjects/storytellers were a combination of people Hakim already knew and people suggested by friends, relatives, acquaintances and business colleagues. “I asked who they knew that was an exceptionally kind person.”

Some of the interviews were conducted in-person, others by phone. A lot of the work for the project took place after the pandemic had started.

Rafferty was suggested to Hakim by his cousin, Linda A. Miller of Holden. Interviewed at the age of 90, Rafferty recalled the start of Abby’s House as an emergency overnight shelter for women and their children on Crown Street in 1976 after 2½ years of grassroots organizing. It is now at 52 High St. with 79 units of affordable housing and a nine-bed shelter specifically for women and children.

In the 1970s, Rafftery faced resistance from powers that be, usually male, who didn’t think a place such as Abby’s House was even necessary.

In terms of her walking, she tells Hakim in for “Walk in My Shoes”:

“I have walked with women to the courthouse.

I have walked with women to the hospitals.

I have walked with prostitutes on the street.

I have walked to the homes of women of great distinction to gather support.

I even walked into HarleyDavidson, and they gave us money!

I have walked to inspire people to help others, talking about our mission to schools, colleges, businesses, and foundations.

When I asked one of the residents in our women’s shelter, ‘What’s the hardest thing about living on the street?’ she said, ‘People not looking at me.’ These women need to be acknowledged as human beings. That is why we refer to them as our guests.

Fear of the other gets in the way of compassion.”

As for her shoes, Rafferty told Hakim, “My feet are slim, and I could hardly get a pair of shoes to fit.” She began buying SAS (San Antonio Shoes) shoes and has worn the same brand ever since. They were of a practical design back then. She said, “Perhaps today my favorite shoes have a bit more flair!”

Welu told Hakim, “When you asked about my favorite shoes, I almost chose my baby shoes. My parents used to hang ours on their Christmas tree. I still have mine.

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Sevan teams with Worcester’s Glue Man Records for EP

ROBERT DUGUAY

With a death toll of more than 1.5 million people, the Armenian Genocide is one of the largest examples of systematic mass murder in human history. Happening in the Ottoman Empire, present day Turkey, from 1915 during World War I to 1923, there were death marches into the Syrian Desert, forced deprivation of food and water and periodic instances of robbery, rape and massacres. To this day Turkey denies that the whole thing happened, but all across the world there are memorials to the ones lost during this horrific event. There are three of them in Massachusetts with Armenian Heritage Park in Boston, the Armenian Martyrs Memorial on the grounds of Saints Vartanantz Armenian Orthodox Church in Chelmsford and the Armenian Genocide Memorial in Watertown. In various Armenian families, there have been stories about the genocide passed down from generation to generation.

Influenced by these stories, Boston progressive sludge metal act Sevan released its “Guide Me Holy Ararat” EP on Jan. 6 via the Worcester-based label Glue Man Records.

“I’ve known the members of Sevan for a very long time through playing shows with all of them and even playing in a band called Rest with their bassist, Colin McGandy,” label owner AJ Pottle says. “When I started Glue Man Records, I wanted to create a platform for bands making music from our area that also want to contribute positively in their communities. Being an Armenian-American myself, their message really resonated with me and I was honored to be a part of releasing their album.”

The EP was engineered and mixed by Zach Weeks at God City Studios in Salem, while Joe Bicchieri assisted in the production at Remedy Music in Worcester and Brad Boatright did the mastering at Audiosiege in Portland, Oregon. In support of the families dealing with the current state of Armenia, 100% of digital proceeds of the EP will be donated to the My Step Foundation to help support the country’s infrastructure and growth.

“I knew I have always wanted to write a record about the Armenian genocide as an Armenian-American,” guitarist and vocalist Luke Chobanian said. “My family’s experiences and stories felt too important to ignore as a topic and I wanted to preserve the oral history through our music all while exploring my Armenian identity. I was very influenced by the sheer weight and horror of the experiences my family went through such as the forced desert marches, watching their children murdered in front of them and the destruction of their homeland in Van and Antep in present day Turkey. These experiences and our ability to thrive as a culture despite nearly being ethnically cleansed gave me the passion to write this record. I was able to reflect on Armenian pride and perseverance on the last song, ‘Kef,’ to wrap up the album.”

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“For us, we wanted to donate every cent we could to Armenia, especially during this time of war and conflict in the Artsakh territory,” he adds. “We are seeing behaviors and threats from Turkey and Azerbaijan that could easily spiral out into another genocide. We want to do everything we can to build awareness and help give back. I’ve been following My Step Foundation for the past few years and love their work with addressing multiple issues at once with helping eradicate poverty, build infrastructure and improve public health in Armenia. We thought this would be the best fundraiser for our cause.”

Along with “Kef” closing out the EP, “Bleeding Crescent”, “Desert Walk”, “Eetch” and “Goddess” each are excellent tracks chock full of amplification and intensity. Chobanian’s riffs are thunderous while McGandy’s skills on bass create rock solid rhythms with Sean Thomas on drums. To stream and purchase “Guide Me Holy Ararat” with your money going toward helping vulnerable people, log on to Glue Man Records’ Bandcamp page at gluemanrecords.bandcamp.com.

A drawing by Cliff Hakim of a shoe representing Annette Rafferty, founder of Abby’s House.

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CLIFF HAKIM CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5

I have large, narrow feet, and these Allen Edmonds Classic Cap Toes fit me well. My shoes are a constant in my life, a foundation. Just like the values I inherited from my family. My father ran a local ice cream store for nine years, and my siblings and I worked in it seven days a week for no pay. We learned to work hard and to make ice cream. I am probably more famous for making ice cream than I am as a museum director.”

Welu worked at the Worcester Art Museum for 36 years and was director from 1986 to 2011.

He tells Hakim, “The goal of the museum is not just to show off beautiful objects. It’s to educate, to teach people to care more about their lives and the process of civilization. A museum holds the DNA of history. The world has seen both good and bad. Maybe by knowing the dark side, we won’t have to repeat it.”

Other storytellers in “Walk In my Shoes” include Valerie Andrews, a book editor who edited one of Hakim’s earlier books.

“I had not been in touch with her for 20 years. She became one of the storytellers for this book and also the editor for the book.”

A landscaper Hakim knew, John Saulle, also became a storyteller. “He started telling me stories about paying it forward in his life,” Hakim said. “Karma is real,” Saulle says.

Another acquaintance, Stephen Cocuzzo, a cyclist and hairstylist, recalls a customer who had little money. Cocuzzo told him to pay what he can. One day the customer showed up with a huge wad of bills.

Katherine Switzer was the first woman to officially run the Boston Marathon in 1967, but during her run the race manager repeatedly assaulted Switzer trying to grab her bib number and stop her competing. Her bib number was 261.

“She started 261 Fearless, an educational program to help women get esteem and live fearlessly,” Hakim said.

He interviewed her from New Zealand where Swizter now lives.

“it’s not about running. It’s about changing women’s lives,” she says.

“The timing (of the publishing) has been great,” Hakim said. “My feeling of why I wrote it is mirrored in society. People are saying, ‘I’ve been feeling sad.’ ‘I’ve been feeling angry.’ What I’ve been dismayed about is the number of people who feel they don’t count.”

This in “a world that seems deaf to the needs of others.”

Hakim asked, “If we can’t have a conversation with each other, then what do we have? … Without kindness we can’t save the planet.”

However, regarding the book’s timeliness amid the political landscape, “I don’t really want to turn it into a political issue. It’s really an issue of humanity and one another’s being,” Hakim said.

“0ne thing that flowed through the 35 stories was the courage they had to give of themselves,” he noted.

“I wanted to paint this landscape of people who are helping the world in small and large ways.”