June Newsletter – Grant Funding Updates, Celebrating Women in Engineering and New Hires

Former Saint-Gobain Manufacturing Site Selected for $2M Brownfields Cleanup Grant

The USEPA recently selected New Garden Park, Inc., to receive a $2,000,000 Brownfields Cleanup Grant. The Brownfields Program promotes the prevention, assessment, clean up, and reuse of brownfield sites. This grant was one of only two awarded in all of New England, and one of 19 nationally! Funds will be used on a portion of 51 acres of underused land in Worcester’s “Greendale Campus” area, which is the site of the former Saint-Gobain manufacturing company.

BETA is excited and privileged to be part of the development team working on this project. The firm has been working on the site since 2015, providing environmental assessment services for potential sources of contamination both in building materials and within the subsurface environment. With this grant funding, BETA will focus on an eight-acre portion of the campus, providing LSP and environmental engineering services. Upon completion of the remediation, New Garden Park anticipates that pad-ready sites will be redeveloped, placing the vacant and blighted parcels back into productive use, creating new jobs in the community, and generating additional tax revenue for the City.  Read more here.

The Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) Grant Funding Deadline Approaching

Initiated last year, the Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) discretionary grant program provides billions in funding over five years to support regional, local, and tribal initiatives to prevent roadway deaths and serious injuries. The fiscal year (FY) 2023 Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for Safe Streets and Roads for All grants is now open through July 10, 2023.

Funds for the FY 2023 SS4A grant program are to be awarded on a competitive basis to support planning, infrastructure, behavioral, and operational initiatives to prevent death and serious injury on roads and streets involving all roadway users, including pedestrians; bicyclists; public transportation, personal conveyance, and micromobility users; motorists; and commercial vehicle operators.

Want to learn more about this program? Contact us today!

Applications Open for New Discretionary Grant Program

The PROTECT (Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient and Cost-Saving Transportation) discretionary grant program is now accepting applications, offering up to $848 million in funding. The PROTECT program aims to improve the resilience of surface transportation to natural hazards and climate change impacts. It supports various activities including planning, resilience improvements, community resilience and evacuation routes, and strengthening at-risk coastal infrastructure. Applications for the PROTECT grant are due by August 18th. To learn more about eligibility and other details of this grant program, click here.

Reach out today to learn how BETA can help you enhance the resilience of your transportation infrastructure and contribute to climate change adaptation efforts.

Celebrating Women in Engineering and #MakeSafetySeen

Join us in celebrating International Women in Engineering Day (INWED) on June 23rd, an annual event organized by the Women’s Engineering Society (WES). This year marks the 10th anniversary of INWED, and we are thrilled to continue our support in recognizing the incredible contributions of women engineers.

The theme for this year’s celebration is #MakeSafetySeen. It highlights the paramount importance of safety in the field of engineering and emphasizes the need to promote a safe and inclusive working environment for all professionals. At BETA, we are proud to align with this theme as safety is at the forefront of our values and practices.
INWED plays a crucial role in providing a platform for women engineers who are still under-represented in the industry. It showcases their remarkable achievements, groundbreaking innovations, and impactful contributions, inspiring future generations of women to pursue careers in engineering.

BETA is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion within our workforce. We recognize the invaluable perspectives and talents that women engineers bring to the table. We celebrate their achievements, amplify their voices, and provide a supportive environment for their growth and success. Moreover, safety is an integral aspect of our work. We prioritize the well-being of our employees, clients, and the communities we serve. By incorporating safety measures and protocols throughout our projects, we ensure that every endeavor is executed with utmost care and precaution.

Welcome to the Team!

Mary Lhyn Nguyen joins BETA as part of our structural group as an engineering designer. Mary received her bachelor’s in civil engineering from Wentworth Institute of Technology. While earning her degree, Mary completed two co-ops: a bridge inspection co-op where she analyzed build drawings and inspected and documented loose concrete, and a MassDOT District 6 construction co-op where she monitored the ongoing construction activities at the North Washington Street Bridge.

Offionganwan “Offi” Adediran joins BETA as an engineer in our traffic and transportation group. Offi received her bachelor’s in civil engineering from the University of Uyo in Nigeria and her master’s in civil engineering from Northeastern University. Offi brings experience designing roadways and intersections and conducting traffic analyses, impact studies, functional design reports, and peer reviews. Offi is an active member of the Boston WTS Group and serves on the program committee.

Daniel Walsh joins BETA’s water and wastewater group as an engineer. Daniel recently received his bachelor’s in civil engineering from the University of Maine’s College of Engineering. Daniel interned for BETA in the water and wastewater group for the past two summers and is thrilled to join BETA full-time.

Austin Pzenny joins BETA as an engineering designer in our transportation group. Austin received his bachelor’s and master’s in civil engineering from UMass Amherst. While in college, he worked as part of a transportation research team on a variety of intelligent transportation and traffic engineering projects and served as the secretary of the UMass Joint Transportation Organization.

Courtney Botelho joins BETA as an engineer in our water and wastewater group. Courtney received her bachelor’s in chemistry from the University of Richmond and her master’s in civil and environmental engineering as well as in water resource management from the University of Wisconsin. Courtney joins BETA from the NEIWPCC in Lowell, MA where she was an environmental analyst, managing over a half million dollars in federal grant coordination with the EPA. She was also a Water Supply Specialist for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, coordinating the Wisconsin PFAS municipal drinking water sampling initiative.

Anna Haznar joins BETA as a staff scientist in our environmental group. Anna received her bachelor’s in environmental science from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts. Anna joins BETA from The Trustees of Reservations where she was a Habitat Specialist in charge of maintaining priority habitats that require routine maintenance for ecological purposes, including invasive plant control.

Do you want to become an employee-owner?

We are currently looking for talented staff across many of our disciplines in offices throughout New England. BETA will challenge you with interesting work and offers the potential for growth and advancement. Browse our current job openings.

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