5/30/14 - The Howell Downtown Development Authority is discussing the possibility of encouraging green initiatives within the city. DDA Board President Eric Conn says preliminary talks have begun focused on reducing Howellâs carbon footprint and making the city more eco-friendly. He says one of the DDAâs goals over the past year was to make the city more attractive for younger people, and green initiatives are among the factors considered by the demographic when choosing where to live. The DDA discussed various possibilities for green initiatives at its regular meeting Wednesday night. These included offering small grants to local businesses that were willing to renovate with energy-efficient materials or install new environmentally-friendly features, like rooftop green space. The board also discussed possible changes to the services it provides the city, including the purchase of solar-powered compactors to act as trash cans on city streets. That particular idea was also touted as a possible way to save money, since other communities that experimented with similar products saw a reduction in time and money required for DPW trash collection. Although these talks are still very preliminary, Conn says environmentally-conscious changes to the city and the DDA are being seriously considered by the board. (TD)
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