HANOVER COOP COMMUNITY MARKET WINS 2011 PLAN NH MERIT AWARD OF EXCELLENCE

Hanover, NH, April 19, 2011 – On March 31, 2011, Plan New Hampshire announced that the Hanover COOP Community Market project, designed by UK Architects in Hanover, NH, received a 2011 "Merit Award for Excellence." This honor marks the third award that the Community Market project has received. Previously, the store was awarded the 2010 American Institute of Architects, New Hampshire, "Excellence in Design Award" and the 2009 Business NH Magazine "Green Structure Award: New Building."

The store is located in Lyme, New Hampshire, and is owned by the Hanover Consumer Cooperative Society. UK Architects' design team included ORW (landscape architects), Engineering Ventures (structural engineers), John F. Penney Consulting (mechanical engineers), and others. The General Contractor was Trumbull-Nelson Construction.

The 5,500 s.f. grocery store was designed to be within easy walking and biking distance of the nearby neighborhood and as a community gathering place. Its generous south-facing glass enhances the store's transparency and connection to the neighborhood. Its north-facing main entrance, with its large glazed vestibule and garage-style doors, offers protection from winter winds and opens the store to the outside in summer.

As described by Plan NH (www.plannh.com/awards), "Not only is the project a good re-use of a former gas service station site, but the COOP utilized numerous sustainable materials during construction, met many of the NH Smart Growth Principles, and collaborates with local food producers to provide a marketplace for their products." Some of the sustainable elements that were used include geothermal heating and cooling systems, closed cell foam insulation, a sealed building envelope, energy efficient lighting (including LED lighting, skylights, and daylight harvesters to automatically dim lights), energy efficient mechanical systems, and water retention systems.

Each year, Plan New Hampshire recognizes exemplary projects that reflect their mission and that incorporate the principles of Smart Growth, sustainability, social responsibility, and/or creative approaches to partnership and collaboration.