Falmouth Economic Industrial and Development Corporation on Tuesday, October 13, received an update on FalmouthNet from board member Art Gaylord. In November 2020, a feasibility study funded by the EDIC was conducted by CCG Consulting, and results showed that Falmouth is, in fact, a feasible area for a fiber optic network.

“We were very grateful that the EDIC stepped forward and provided $52,000 to fund that initial study that got things going,” Mr. Gaylord said. “Since then, a lot has been happening.”

He told the board that FalmouthNet is now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Mr. Gaylord also reported that FalmouthNet is currently refining its design for the fiber optic network, having recently put out a request for proposals for an engineering design that will actually consider the street-by-street requirements of implementing the network. This phase of the project, he said, was largely funded by state legislators, Senator Susan L. Moran and Representatives David T. Vieira and Dylan Fernandes. Using a combination of on-site time and virtual assets like Google street view, the engineers will be able to determine specific needs of Falmouth in terms of implementing fiber optics.

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Now about a month into his new position, executive director of the Economic Development and Industrial Corporation Wayne Lingafelter has a message to share with the Falmouth community: the EDIC is open for business.

To be clear, it was never really closed, but being under new leadership means that the quasi-governmental board is looking to broaden its connections with the business community in town and deepen the working relationships the EDIC has already.

“We want to make sure that we’re a forward, public-facing body,” Mr. Lingafelter said in a phone interview. “We’re open for business. I don’t want to imply that we were closed, but we very much want to continue our efforts to reach out to the community and understand the business community’s needs.”

Mr. Lingafelter has been a resident of Falmouth for about five years, but he originally hails from Ohio. Most of his 30-year career has been in commercial real estate, bringing him to various markets in the Midwest and mid-Atlantic, his most recent stop being in the Baltimore/Washington, DC, area. Before joining the EDIC, Mr. Lingafelter was the president of the development and construction division of a public real estate company. That experience, he said, felt like it was in alignment with what the EDIC was looking for in its search for a new executive director.

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There was an unusually large turnout at Falmouth’s Economic Development and Industrial Corporation meeting on Tuesday morning, September 14, all due to one agenda item.

About eight residents showed up to participate in the discussion of 59 Depot Avenue, where John P. Marcellino and his wife, Marion, operate The Station Grill.

The EDIC had a longtime goal of opening a food establishment in the station and in May 2018 awarded the concession to Mr. Marcellino, who had a successful past in the food truck business.

Mr. Marcellino’s three-year lease for the restaurant is up, and Massachusetts state procurement laws require certain procedures to be followed, including an impending request for proposals (RFP) for the property.

Although an RFP has not been issued yet, public knowledge of the state’s procedural requirements and speculation about what that might mean for The Station Grill prompted a group of patrons to attend the EDIC’s meeting.

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Falmouth EDIC Announces CDBG Grant Program Update and Grant Awardees

Falmouth Economic Development & Industrial Corporation (EDIC) announced today that a total of 12 Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) have been awarded to local Falmouth businesses to date, totaling a sum awarded of $119,300.

The Falmouth Select Board, working in partnership with the Falmouth EDIC, received $148,840 in funding by the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) for the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program. These grants for up to $10,000 are to support low to moderate income business owners of micro-enterprises in Falmouth that have been negatively impacted by COVID-19 business interruptions.

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F. Michael DiGiano, executive director of the Falmouth Economic Development and Industrial Corporation, has announced that he has stepped down from his position.

Mr. DiGiano, who lives in Falmouth, has served as the executive director at the EDIC for two years. He said his decision to step down stems from his involvement in commercial and industrial real estate in Boston. Mr. DiGiano is currently the executive vice president of commercial real estate company NAI Hunneman, a position he has held for 15 years.

“I really enjoyed working at EDIC and I enjoyed working with the town boards and various businesses,” he said. “This was ultimately a personal decision. I have other things demanding of my time and I had to make a choice and for me, this was the right decision.”

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Phase two construction of the solar array at the capped Falmouth landfill off Thomas B. Landers Road is well underway and should be completed by the end of May or beginning of June, according to Falmouth Economic Development and Industrial Corporation executive director Michael DiGiano.

This second and final phase is scheduled to be functioning during the third quarter of this year and will provide two megawatts of clean and renewable energy to go along with the four megawatts that are already being generated by phase one.

Phase one, completed in 2017, has already generated enough electricity to bring in $500,000 in yearly revenue to the town through Eversource.

Some of the revenue generated from phase two is going to benefit low-income ratepayers in Falmouth in the form of $300 electric bill credits.

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The Falmouth Economic Development & Industrial Corporation is continuing to accept applications for the Micro-Enterprise Grant Assistance Program from small business owners who have experienced business losses due to COVID-19.

The deadline for applications, which are being processed on a first-come, first-served basis, has been extended to Friday, April 30.

The funding is provided by the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development for the Community Development Block Grant Program and allows for grants of up to $10,000 to support low- to moderate-income small business owners in Falmouth who have been impacted negatively by COVID-19 business interruptions, according to the EDIC website.

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Kevin Pease of West Falmouth, owner of Kevin Pease School of Tennis, is proposing to build a sports facility in Falmouth Technology Park. Mr. Pease brought his proposal to the Falmouth Economic Development and Industrial Corporation on Tuesday, April 13.

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A feasibility study of a fiber optic community network for Falmouth will be reviewed by its author, telecommunications expert Doug Dawson, at a Zoom meeting organized by Falmouth Public Library on Wednesday, April 7, at 7 PM.

The public is welcome to attend the Zoom meeting. Registration is required. To register, go to http://tinyurl.com/falmouthnet-library

Mr. Dawson will summarize his findings and be available to answer questions. This will be the first Falmouth review of the study conducted by its author. FalmouthNet board member Daniel Gessen will begin the meeting with an overview of FalmouthNet, while fellow FalmouthNet board member David Isenberg will moderate the meeting. Other members of the nonprofit will also be available to address public comments and questions.

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I was a director of the Falmouth Economic Development & Industrial Corporation (EDIC) for many years and I worked each day to ensure that our community be afforded every possible economic opportunity. In my last year at the agency, I finalized negotiations on an extremely valuable project that I think everyone should know about.

We transformed the old landfill on Thomas B. Landers Road into a large-scale solar farm designed to provide discount green energy to Falmouth families in need. Our partner in this project, Citizens Energy Corporation, was founded by Joseph P. Kennedy II to make life’s basic needs more affordable through creative energy ventures. Their innovative program, JOE-4-SUN, is already saving some local households $300 every year on their energy bills.

In the past year our residents have faced unprecedented need and I am very proud of how hard the EDIC has worked to address the financial hardships brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Not only do the hardworking folks there seek out opportunities for the town government and hard-hit businesses, but also for Falmouth families.

The JOE-4-SUN program puts money back into the pockets of our residents while making the green energy revolution accessible for all. I strongly urge anyone who needs a hand to apply today at www.citizensenergy.com/joe4sun-falmouth or call (855) JOE-4-SUN.

James E. Fox

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