An energy model for all to see - Maple Grove, MN - News Article Locations on Waymarking.com

This is the wind turbine featured in an article in the Star Tribune, the metro's largest newspaper publication. The article is linked below, but as the site requires an account to access it and it will eventually be archived, I'll include the text here as well. Thanks!

An energy model for all to see

A 160-foot-tall wind turbine in Maple Grove -- one of only five wind turbines in North American metro areas -- is expected to generate lots of energy. It's also generating plenty of buzz.

Drive through sparsely populated southwestern Minnesota and you expect to see rows of windmills sprouting from otherwise open fields.

But a wind turbine near Interstate 94 in the Twin Cities?

The towering structure with fan-like blades at its crown is the latest focal point of a new home being built for Great River Energy, an electric-utility cooperative that serves much of Minnesota and parts of western Wisconsin.

The wind turbine, just a short breeze from the Arbor Lakes Shopping Center, may tower above, but hardly dwarfs, Great River Energy's new 166,000-square-foot building, which is scheduled to open in April on Earth Day.

The entire campus is a study in energy efficiency and sustainable features. In pursuing a rare Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum rating that has been awarded to fewer than 35 buildings worldwide, Great River Energy plans to reduce energy used through lighting with solar panels and daylight and motion sensors.

The concrete structural frame consists of 60 percent fly ash, created when coal is burned to generate electricity. Rain water will be collected and used for irrigating gardens and flushing toilets. A geothermal system, buried under Arbor Lake, will heat and cool the building with low-energy ventilation placed beneath floors. The structure's wood has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, a labor union for the wood industry.

"But clearly the turbine is what stands out most," said Gary Connett, director of environmental stewardship and member services for Great River Energy, currently based in Elk River.

It's been four decades since a noted Minnesotan checked the currents and proclaimed that you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows. So why the turbine? The answer, Connett explained, is blowing in the wind.

"As people drive by and see it, they'll see it and hopefully realize that this is what the future has in store for us," said Connett of the turbine which, he says, can generate 225 kilowatts -- enough to power Great River Energy's new home, and enough to power 75 homes during a high-demand period.

"Our building will use 60 percent the energy a typical building this size uses. We're showing that this kind of energy innovation and conservation is possible anywhere, even in an urban area."

The only other North American urban areas to boast wind turbines are Toronto, Cincinnati and Boston, which has two, said Doug Pierce of the Perkins and Will architect firm, based in Minneapolis. It was Pierce who two years ago tried to paint a picture of what a green building might look like -- and looked to the wind turbine for direction.

Perkins and Will authorized a wind-tunnel testing agency in Toronto to build a scale model that would test a wind turbine in an urban location, where tall buildings, shopping centers and developments can block gusts both gentle and strong.

"And now we'll see how our predicted skills are," Pierce said. "Everyone will be able to see how it performs."

Letting the public see

What casual observers and the 350 employees in the new, $42 million Great River Energy center will see is a turbine tower built in Denmark, where European scientists are devoted to harnessing energy sources, and refurbished in South Dakota, where prairie winds battle the terrain and human spirit.

How can the general public catch the wind? When the building opens, a kiosk inside will allow the public to see some of the 35 meters within the headquarters that monitor how much energy is generated by the wind turbine. Readings also will be available on the company's website, Pierce said.

"There will be times when the wind turbine is working and the sun's out that we'll be generating more energy than we need -- maybe after hours on Saturdays or Sundays," Connett said. "Everything that we've done with this building has a six- to seven-year payback."

Unlike Xcel Energy, which has more than 600,000 customers, Great River Energy is a nonprofit wholesaler to 28 energy companies, which then sell energy to retail customers located in two-thirds of Minnesota, plus part of Wisconsin.

"To get the platinum LEED certification, at least 12 percent of your energy has to come from site renewables," Connett said. "We wanted that and more.

"We wanted to be cutting-edge, and we wanted to show the public how it could be done. We wanted to put our energy where our mouth is."

Type of publication: Newspaper When was the article reported?: 11/27/2007 Publication: StarTribune Article Url: [Web Link] Is Registration Required?: yes How widespread was the article reported?: regional News Category: Business/Finance

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