Charter Street Heating Plant renovation focus of Aug. 11 public meeting

Plans to renovate the Charter Street Heating Plant and findings of the final environmental impact statement for the project will be the topics of a public hearing on Wednesday, Aug. 11, at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

The session will begin at 5:30 p.m. on Room 1106 of the Mechanical Engineering Building, 1513 University Ave., with an informal open house. A formal presentation will start at 6:15 p.m. Free parking will be available after 5 p.m. in the Lot 17 parking ramp on Engineering Drive.

Individuals will be offered an opportunity to express support, issues or concerns they believe should be addressed during the remainder of the environmental impact statement process.

Plans call for the plant’s boilers to be upgraded and the primary fuel will shift from coal to biomass and natural gas during the next three years as part of a $251 million state-funded retrofitting.

Copies of the final environmental impact statement are available at the Madison Public Library, 201 W. Mifflin St., or at UW–Madison’s Helen C. White Library, 600 N. Park St. Electronic copies of the document and comment forms are available at http://www.ayresprojectinfo.com/Charter/.

Comments may be submitted by Aug. 13 to Ben Peotter, Ayres Associates, 1802 Pankratz St., Madison, WI 53704-4069 or by e-mail to peotterb@ayresassociates.com.