Newmarket Mills serves as 'green' economic engine

The Newmarket Mills may be similar to many New England redevelopment projects, but what distinguishes it is the greenest of green concepts — recycling old buildings.

"The vision originally comes from builder Eric Chinburg's love of old mill buildings and that something which is beautiful, but falling apart, can be given a new life," said Jen Chinburg, Newmarket Mills' marketing director.

Founded in 1987 by Eric Chinburg, Chinburg Builders has helped re-purpose 10 former mill sites, including Millport in Portsmouth, the Washington and Cocheco mills in Dover and the Canal Street mill in Somersworth.

"We've learned a lot in the process of saving these buildings," Jen Chinburg said. "Newmarket Mills is the culmination of this knowledge."

The Newmarket Mills offers 50,000 square feet of commercial space and will eventually feature 112 apartments. The majority of the 150-year-old buildings has been preserved for re-use, said Geoff Spitzer, Chinburg's senior project manager and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certified professional and Newmarket Mills senior project manager.

Approximately 80 percent of all demolition debris is segregated and recycled, including all metal and most wood. All brick and stone has been cleaned and re-used throughout the buildings and in the landscaping, Spitzer said.

Energy-efficient in-floor radiant heat will be used to heat residential apartments. Concrete floors were a sustainable solution and the cement is produced in Thomaston, Maine. The sand and stone aggregate are from a local sand pit, the mixing plants are in Dover and Portsmouth, and the people who install the concrete are also local.

"People and products that travel short distances use less fuel and have a smaller carbon footprint," Spitzer said.

All lighting is done with energy efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs and/or T8 fluorescents, and most common-area lighting is on motion-activated sensors. Chinburg laid more than 4 inches of rigid insulation and selected white EPDM (synthetic rubber) roofing, which increases reflectivity, lowering the cooling load inside the building and making air conditioning condensers on the roof more efficient, all decreasing electricity use.

Chinburg Builders recently joined the Green Alliance, a local "green" business union that certifies its business members green and advocates for greener choices to the public.

"You can preserve green space, which means having people living in existing space and not, for example, having them live individually on 2 acres each. Instead, they're on town utilities, linked to existing systems," Jen Chinburg said.

Newmarket Mills includes a shared courtyard space. "We hope to encourage musicians to play while people have their lunch," she said.

The mills will also have a fitness room, club room, community movie nights, wine tastings, book clubs, and a boat launch onto the Lamprey River and on to Great Bay.

Apartments include studios, one- and two-bedroom apartments and lofts. Chinburg Builders leased all 38 units in six weeks during the project's first phase, which is 100 percent occupied with a mix of businesses such as a custom bike manufacturer, a shoemaker, a barber, restaurants and a sewing company. The project's second phase includes 74 apartments, with 12 yet to be rented.

"We estimate that this space will be home to 30 companies with 50 to 60 employees and 112 living units with twice that number of residents," she said.