Fifth Town Cheese Factory
Construction documents for the Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Factory (http://www.fifthtown.ca/) will be issued for Tender in mid-April 2007 with construction slated to start in mid-May. We have spent the past six months reexamining alternative energy generation systems including wind, solar photovoltaic, solar hot water, geo-thermal, and bio-mass. We are also exploring the possibility of creating a naturalized wetland to dispose of the waste whey in an environmentally-friendly way. We are currently finalizing details of the chosen systems. What has made all of this possible is the development of a green-energy financing model between Fifth Town and Zero-Footprint (http://www.zerofootprint.ca/). During this period, we also completed several minor revisions to the building, such as the doubling in floor area of the underground cheese aging caves and the addition of 24" to the height of the truck wash bay to allow for the addition of steam to the process equipment. Some exterior materials have also been revised. The retaining wall next to the shipping area has been changed to a gabion wall, which is comprissed of galvanized steel cages filled with large local stones. The cladding of the truck wash bay has been changed to a German cement board product called SuperPanel, which is more durable, recycled and more economical. In addition, we are designing a free-form canvas structure to help protect the south-facing courtyard. A new rendering is being prepared and should be available in a few weeks. Check back then!
