Sustainability

Local activists get approval to install solar panels on Ypsilanti City Hall

By Newsroom

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October 15, 2008

A group of local environmental activists are gearing up to put a modern twist on Ypsilanti's historic City Hall. The final approval for the project is in now that the city’s Historic District Commission gave the green light last night. The group plans to start putting the solar panels on the backside of the City Hall next year. "Our next step is to request bids," says Dave Strenski, volunteer with the Ypsilanti Solar Panel Project. The best part is that this will cost the city exactly nothing. The volunteers landed a $36,000 grant and brought in a few thousand dollars in local donations to complete the funding. The Ypsilanti Solar Panel Project is also the group that put solar panels on top of the Ypsilanti Food Co-op. The City Hall solar panel won't satisfy all of the facility's electric needs, but it will serve as a demonstration of how solar technology works and can be used in private projects, such as in homes or in businesses. The volunteers are also setting up a website that will monitor how much electricity the panels produce at both the Co-op and City Hall. The Ypsilanti Solar Panel Project is still looking for $50 pledges to fund the City Hall and future projects. For information on giving, click here. Source: Dave Strenski, volunteer with the Ypsilanti Solar Panel Project Writer: Jon Zemke

Latest in Sustainability

Could revised 601 Forest plans leave space for another high-density development?

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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October 15, 2008

Could the fight over the 601 Forest project just be prelude to another fight down the road? It might turn out that way as its developers' revised plans for a smaller version of the high-rise development are approved next week.The new designs shrink the original plans by half. The 'adjusted' building would be 14 stories tall instead of 26. It would house 150-175 rooms with 570-610 beds for students at the nearby University of Michigan. That's down from 342 residential units with 1,100 beds in the original plans. 601 Forest would replace the Village Corner party store and a nearby apartment building. The adjacent Mud Bowl would be left alone. The new proposed building's footprint is almost half its original size. "That remaining parcel is about a half acre," says Matt Kowalski, a city planner for the city of Ann Arbor. "It's a significant parcel."The developers, Hughes Properties and Omena Real Estate Investments, haven't proposed doing anything with it yet. They could come back with another proposal for a high-density, high-rise development down the road if the new plans are approved at City Council's meeting Monday evening.If such a scenario played out, it could achieve the same density as originally proposed but with slightly smaller buildings. When you consider that the ugly national economy and skittish lending markets are making it harder for big-ticket projects, splitting the project into two buildings over time could be a viable way of achieving the same goal.Attempts to reach the developers for comment proved unsuccessful.The battle over 601 Forrest has been raging for months now as Ann Arbor struggles with the idea of expanding vertically at its core in an urban fashion or continuing with horizontal, suburban-sprawl-style growth. The city has already approved a handful of other mid-rise and high-rise residential projects and has several more awaiting approval.The argument in favor of vertical developments like 601 Forest is that their density and proximity to the city's center are in sync with sustainable practices and smart growth. Opponents claim such tall buildings create more density than infrastructure can handle and create adverse natural phenomenon, such as wind tunnels. Stay tuned for more on this subject.Source: Matt Kowalski, city planner for the city of Ann ArborWriter: Jon Zemke

Ann Arbor DDA works with businesses to reduce energy costs

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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October 15, 2008

The Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority is offering energy audits for free or at a greatly reduced price to downtown businesses in an effort to increase the city's sustainability.The idea is to lower energy costs for downtown businesses while improving the city's image as a community dedicated to efficient and renewable energy. The DDA is also working with the city's Green Energy Challenge to make this happen.The DDA's Downtown Energy Saving Grant Program provides a free energy audit to buildings 16,667 square feet or smaller. The program will pay up to $5,000 for audits of larger buildings. So far 47 applications have been approved, including 14 buildings larger than 17,000 square feet.Energy audits work similar to financial audits. They assess how much energy a building is using and give recommendations for how to improve efficiency and best incorporate renewable energy sources. These audits often reveal door and window leaks, areas of poor insulation, and outdated lighting or heating systems and controls.The DDA is also working on a second phase to the program, which will include matching grants for building owners who decide to implement recommendations from the energy audit.Ann Arbor's DDA has been a leader in Michigan when it comes to promoting sustainable initiatives. It has sponsored programs that promote alternative transportation, such as bring in Zipcars, build bike lockers and racks, and push for commuter rail. One of its recent initiatives included the installation of solar panels at Ann Arbor's Farmer's Market. For information on the DDA's Downtown Energy Saving Grant Program, call the city of Ann Arbor’s Energy Office at (734) 996-3150. Source: Susan Pollay, executive director for the Ann Arbor Downtown Development AuthorityWriter: Jon Zemke

Ann Arbor holds meeting on underground parking garage plans

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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October 8, 2008

Just how the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority plans to make 770 parking spaces disappear beneath the surface parking lot adjacent to the Ann Arbor District Library downtown is about to be revealed.The DDA plans to hold a public meeting on the grandiose parking project at 7 p.m. Tuesday in its offices on 150 S. Fifth Ave. There DDA officials and planners will detail the plans.The devils in those details include creating a 4-story deep underground parking garage that runs beneath the current parking lot but adjacent Fifth Avenue, too. It will connect the old YMCA site and the site for the newly proposed downtown library branch. The DDA hired two firms, Walker Parking Consultants and Luckenbach/Ziegelman Architects, to design the underground structure. That subterranean garage will also feature a number of environmentally friendly features, such as natural lighting and LED lights.City officials are still debating what to put above the underground structure but there are reports of plans for a small convention center. The City Council should vote on the plan later this year.For information, call Susan Pollay at (734) 994-6697. Source: Susan Pollay, executive director of the Ann Arbor Downtown Development AuthorityWriter: Jon Zemke

Bottled Water at Issue in Great Lakes

By Newsroom

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Environment & Sustainability

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October 8, 2008

Once again, Ann Arbor is mentioned as one of the leaders in the U.S. environmentalism trends. This time its all about water. Excerpt: Even as a 10-year campaign to block wholesale export of Great Lakes water came to a successful conclusion in Congress last week, some legislators and environmentalists vowed to continue their fight to close a "bottled-water loophole," a campaign that taps into a national debate over sales of H2O in disposable containers. A provision of the Great Lakes Compact allows water to be diverted from the basin if it is in containers holding less than 5.7 gallons. The question is whether bottling water from the aquifers that feed the lakes, the largest repository of fresh water on Earth, should be seen as ordinary human consumption, commercial production, or export of a treasured natural resource. In August, Nestle Waters North America was granted permits for a new well and pipeline at its Ice Mountain facility in Mecosta County, Mich., where it bottles 700,000 gallons a day. Nestle also recently renewed permits for its plant in Guelph, Ontario. Both have sparked vocal opposition from those who say the industry is privatizing a public good and harming the environment. Americans drank 8.8 billion gallons of bottled water in 2007, up 7 percent from 2006, according to the Beverage Marketing Corp. But bottled water has drawn increasing criticism, leading San Francisco, Salt Lake City and Ann Arbor, Mich., among other municipalities, to ban buying bottled water with city funds. Read the rest of the story here.

Local residents turn Prospect Park wetland into rain garden

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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October 8, 2008

A small group of people is (surprise, surprise) making a big impact on Ypsilanti's Prospect Park.A group of local residents near the park turned what had become a watered down bog into a rain garden, promising to greatly improve the area's aesthetics. The park, on the corner of Grove and Prospect streets near Adams Elementary School, has been around for decades.Inside the park is what is called "Luna Lake", a pond with a water fountain in the middle of it. Over the years the fountain and pond fell into disrepair, becoming a stagnant bog, complete with invasive plants and rampant insects.Enough was enough for local residents when they banded together to thsi summer to do something about the problem. The group transformed the bog into a rain garden, using money from the Wildflower Association of Michigan and the Historic Eastside Neighborhood Association. Luna Lake now boasts native plants and more efficient storm-water management."It should be a really pretty space," says Teresa Gillotti, an Ypsilanti resident and Michigan State University Extension employee.A rain garden uses plants such as perennials, shrubs and trees to soak up the rainwater that pools there. It also filters that water and helps reduce how much storm-water runoff problems.The volunteers have already pulled most of the weeds and cleared the brush from Luna Lake earlier this summer. This month they will begin planting the flowers, trees and shrubs that will finish off the project. A planting session will be held between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday. For information on the project, contact Rachel Blistein at rachel@veris-design.com or (734) 485-3990.Source: Teresa Gillotti, Ypsilanti resident and Michigan State University Extension employeeWriter: Jon Zemke

Oil drain will only get worse; oilman Pickens tells U-M audience

By Newsroom

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Education

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October 8, 2008

You know things are dire when a billionaire oilman says we've got to do something about our dependence on oil. With a plea to tap new alternative sources of energy T. Boone Pickens addressed an audience at the University of Michigan.Excerpt:Billionaire T. Boone Pickens brought his national campaign for wind and natural gas power to Ann Arbor Wednesday, telling a nearly full house at the Power Center that Americans will have a reduced standard of living unless they reduce their dependency on foreign oil.Pickens lamented the fact that the U.S. imports 70 percent of its oil at a cost of $700 billion a year. He said the country hasn't had an energy plan in 40 years, but it better get one soon because he predicts oil will be $300 a barrel in 10 years.Read the rest of the story here and how you can buy ultra cheap CFL light bulbs here.

People’s Food Co-op looks to expand into new Ann Arbor location

By Newsroom

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Community Development

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October 1, 2008

The People's Food Cooperative in Ann Arbor is shopping for new space downtown. But it's casually shopping.The storefront grocery co-op specializes in natural, organic, free-trade and environmentally friendly food and products. It has been in business for nearly 37 years and has occupied four different locations downtown during that time. It's been at its current Kerrytown location, near the corner of Fourth and Catherine streets, for about 15 years.The 4,500 square foot retail space is actually a combination of three different historic storefronts, some dating back to the mid-to-late 19th Century. Co-op officials say thoe storefronts give the Co-op character but are sometimes difficult to work with. especially when it comes to stocking space."You sort of always wish you had more space," says Kevin Sharp, marketing and member services manager for the People's Food Cooperative. "We have the advantages and disadvantages of being downtown."The advantages range from lots of foot traffic and a central location, which pulls in people from as far away as Brighton. It is also near the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market."On a nice fall Saturday morning, this neighborhood is just hopping," Sharp says.However, the Co-op doesn't have any space for dedicated parking. There also isn't much nearby space that is affordable (a condition in much of the downtown).Co-op officials have looked at a few retail locations downtown, including the Liberty Lofts space and adjacent parking lot, but have yet to make a decision. Sharp says there isn't a timeline for a decision, but Co-op officials will continue to keep their options open.Source: Kevin Sharp, marketing and member services manager for the People's Food CooperativeWriter: Jon Zemke

Radio Concentrate: Making Electricity Underwater

By Chris McCarus

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Education

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October 1, 2008

In the race to produce cheaper renewable energy, one U-M professor is looking to harness power from the Detroit River. His prototype, an experimental set of cylinders, shafts and magnets, will use the rise and fall of the water's current to generate electricity. Chris McCarus has the story on Radio Concentrate's downloadable podcast.

U-M battery spinout gets $2.5M, Ann Arbor to become “center of energy excellence”

By Newsroom

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Education

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October 1, 2008

Ann Arbor is about to literally become a power center for Michigan's emerging new economy with the creation of the "center of energy excellence".Excerpt:Michigan's economic development agency today is creating a "center of energy excellence" in Ann Arbor in an effort to capitalize on the region's burgeoning battery technology expertise.Sakti3, a startup battery company led by University of Michigan scientist Ann Marie Sastry, will receive $2.5 million from the Michigan Economic Development Corp. to become an "anchor" company. U-M will receive $500,000 to conduct battery research, said Elizabeth Parkinson, director of marketing and public relations for Ann Arbor SPARK.The state's objective is to stimulate the growth of major alternative energy companies with the idea that those firms' decisions to operate in Michigan would attract related companies and technology suppliers to locate here.Read the rest of the story here.