New IWU welcome center to showcase green practices
BYLINE: Michelle Koetters, The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill.
Nov. 1--NORMAL -- Illinois Wesleyan University President Richard Wilson hopes his pitch to a local economic group will lead to some federal money.
Wilson discussed the university's plans for its new welcome center to meet industry standards for green buildings at the Economic Development Council of the Bloomington-Normal Area's One Voice Task Force meeting Wednesday.
"It's the first (LEED building) on our campus. It will serve as a model for future buildings on our campus," Wilson said of plans for the $6.2 million project to meet U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design guidelines.
A key component of the plan is a $250,000 geothermal cooling and heating system, and that's where the university needs more financial help, Wilson said. He's submitted a proposal for the EDC to back the university's project when it picks its top community priorities for fiscal year 2009 budget appropriations.
The 19,000-square-foot, two-story building that will be named after the late IWU President Minor Myers Jr. will meet at least LEED silver level certification, Wilson said. LEED evaluates buildings for sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources and indoor environmental quality. Buildings receive points for meeting qualifications and can achieve certified, silver, gold or platinum recognition.
IWU expects to save 20 to 40 percent on energy costs at that level and should see a payback on the initial investment within five to eight years, Wilson said.
The welcome center will be home to admissions offices and the career center when it opens in August 2008. Its green design is part of the university's commitment to environmental sustainability, Wilson said.
IWU's development office already has raised $5 million for the center. The project also is worthy of the EDC's support and federal money because of the economic impact the university has on the community, said Carl Teichman, IWU director of government and community relations.
The EDC considers job creation, capital investment and community impact when it selects which projects to select as economic priorities, said Executive Director Marty Vanags.
The group's One Voice Task Force will vote on five projects at its December meeting and pass its recommendations to the board of directors, Vanags said. Other proposals are the McLean County Business Incubator, the Multi-Modal Transportation Center in uptown Normal, the Bloomington Cultural District and a Lexington sewer system.
The EDC lobbied for and received promises of funding for the first three projects after a trip to Washington D.C. last March, but those projects still need more money, Vanags said. It's likely the task force and board of directors will approve support for all five proposals, Vanags said.
The EDC will travel to Washington D.C. March 11-13 to lobby for federal money for its top priority projects.
To see more of The Pantagraph, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.pantagraph.com. Copyright (c) 2007, The Pantagraph, Bloomington, Ill. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.