Page 8 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • December 23, 2009
Midland Park
Brian and Robert Bandstra, identical twins, have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, the top honor a Boy Scout can achieve. The Midland Park Church of God was the recipient of both boys’ Eagle projects, and local businesses supported both efforts. Robert upgraded two storage closets, including the removal of old hardware, spackling, sanding, painting and building new shelving. The hallway leading into the Fellowship Hall was repainted. His project also included designing and building two rolling carts for the storage of six folding tables each. Outside renovations included scraping, sanding and painting four sets of six awning windows and six outside doors. Brian’s Eagle project involved scraping and power washing all the old paint, and priming and painting 2,000 square feet of exterior wall at the church. A two-story fire escape was wire brushed and painted. Six exterior railings were wire brushed and painted. Brian and Robert began their Boy Scouting adventure as Tiger Cubs in Pack 157 with their mother as the den leader. They earned the Arrow of Light, the highest award in Cub Scouting, and bridged into Midland Park Boy Scout Troop 157. They rose through the ranks, and have held many leadership positions in the troop includ-
Twins achieve Eagle status
Robert Bandstra, Lloyd Vorderstrasse, and Brian Bandstra.
ing assistant patrol leader, patrol leader, quartermaster, and assistant senior patrol leader. Both were elected into the Order of the Arrow, passed their Ordeal in May of 2008, and attained their Brotherhood in July 2009. Throughout the past four years, they have earned 46 merit badges, far exceeding the 21 required for the rank of Eagle Scout. Both boys are sophomores at Midland Park High School, where they are in the honors program and are consistently on the honor roll.
The Midland Park Council last week gave Public Service Electric & Gas Co. the go ahead to install energy efficient lighting in all borough-owned buildings. The approval came after an energy audit prepared by PSE&G determined the borough could save more than $60,000 over the next five years by installing energy efficient lighting in the four buildings. “We’re joining the program early on, so everything should move along quickly,” said Borough Administrator Michelle Dugan, noting that it will take about two days to retrofit each building. She added that the borough is also on the list for more energy-efficient street lighting. The free audit, part of the utility’s energy efficiency economic stimulus initiative funded with federal funds, was commissioned by the council in September to get in on the ground floor of the offer. “The audits were done on a first-come, first-served basis,” said Dugan, who noted that the savings will be higher after the second year of the program. PSE&G will update the lighting fixtures with highlyefficient products that provide more capability using less electricity. The program covers 100 percent of the cost of the improvements up front. Upon completion of the work, the borough will repay 20 percent of the total cost out of the savings realized from the upgrades, interest free. According to the audit, the largest savings would occur at the borough hall/police department building, where the total improvements would run $16,265 and the yearly reduction in electric costs would be $5,192. The environmental impact would also be significant, equal to planting eight acres of trees or removing four cars from the roads annually, according to EPA estimates. At Memorial Library, the improvements would cost $33,919 for a savings in electricity of $4,662 per year. The environmental impact would be equal to planting six acres of trees or removing three cars from the roads. At the Fire Department/DPW complex on Witte Drive, the project would cost $31,068 and would reduce the electric bill by $4.842. The environmental impact would be the same as at the library. Minor upgrades at the DePhillips Center, which was totally refurbished last year with an eye towards energy efficiency, would cost $3,887 and would result in a savings of $761 per year, equal to planting one acre of trees or removing one car from the road. Dugan said that the highest savings always occur in the facilities with greater usage. She said that the audit also looked at the boilers and air-conditioning units, but it was determined that the payback time would be too long to make any changes worthwhile, since the units are newer.
PSE&G to provide energy upgrades
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