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It’s your paper! Friday, August 10, 2018 • Vol. 5, No. 6 • Fitchburg, WI • ConnectFitchburg.com • $1
Star forming editorial board
Inside
Concerts at McKee photos Page 2 Police increase presence after firearm incidents Page 3
Business
Photo by Tom Schlaefer
The solar panels on the top of the Memorial United Church of Christ’s southern-facing roof will provide power for 90 percent of the congregation’s energy needs. Their energy supplier, Madison Gas and Electric, will get to keep any extra energy generated.
Extended stay hotel gets a rebranding to Hawthorn Suites Page 15
Sports
Oregon Special Olympics wins silver at state Page B1
Schools Oregon referendum for Fitchburg school on Nov. ballot Page B5
Turning toward the sun City, local orgs, residents aim for energy independence KIMBERLY WETHAL Unified Newspaper Group
Fitchburg is going green – rapidly. Over the past decade, public and private entities and residents within the city have increasingly turned to clean energy technologies and infrastructure that uses less energy. Most of it has been solar, and much of that has been installed in three years. The city government began its march toward energy independence when it became one of 1,060 municipalities across the United States to sign on to the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement in 2008, and a year later it signed a 25 x 25 resolution – pledging to generate a quarter of its energy usage from clean energy sources by 2025. At least five businesses within the city limits have chosen to power their operations with clean energy, as well, and at least 24 homeowners have furnished their roofs with panels. Those private entities and residents could play a role in helping the city move further toward energy independence. Between the city installations – including last year’s 362 kW worth of solar put on its municipal buildings – and solar panels installed by private owners and commercial businesses, PRSRT STANDARD ECRWSS US POSTAGE
Going green in Fitchburg This month: Series overview September: City increasing its energy independence October: Private entities and homeowners finding value November: The future of sustainable energy in Fitchburg there’s already enough solar power in Fitchburg to provide energy for 103 homes annually, Madison Gas and Electric corporate communications manager Steve Schultz said. In addition, close to 600 residents have opted to have all their energy come from renewable resources, Schultz said. On the horizon, there’s an opportunity for the city and residents to work together to make enough electrical power for the entire city through solar farms placed on relatively flat farmland. Going even further – to 100 percent energy independence – was a topic of discussion at a Common Council meeting last month, though city staff said that would mean investing in
some extreme changes in operations – such as replacing every gas-fueled vehicle in the city. It would take some serious “shifts in mindset” to achieve, said Ellen Geisler, public works sustainability and neighborhood development specialist. “It’s just not the way we do things right now,” she said.
A city adapts Ten years ago, the City of Fitchburg had just voted in favor of protecting the climate. Now, it’s one of the leading producers of solar energy in the entire city. City administrator Patrick Marsh said if the city isn’t already at its 25 x 25 goal in 2018, it’s close. The city has accomplished this by placing solar panels on top of the buildings on the Lacy Road civic campus throughout the last decade – first in 2009, when solar panels generating 12.3 kilowatts of solar energy were first placed on the roof of City Hall. In 2011, the public works department got installations of ground-mounted solar panels at its maintenance facility a few miles south of the civic campus
Turn to Solar/Page 12
Over the past five years, the Fitchburg Star has continued to evolve our coverage to serve our readers and the community as a whole, but to dig deeper we need your help. We are looking to form a community-based editorial board to both add to the diversity of our opinion page and help provide a broader range of story ideas. This is a formula that has proven successful with two other Unified Newspaper Group newspapers – the Oregon Observer and Stoughton Courier Hub – and we have found it gives us a stronger link to our readers and a more vibrant editorial page. We believe both are essential to a well-functioning community. We are looking for people willing to get involved in discussions about issues affecting Fitchburg, from both a rural and urban perspective, and the three school districts that intersect here. The wider your range of interests – schools, city g overnment, business, public safety, social services – the better. The board will comprise members of the community and Star staff. There are no requirements for serving on the board other than an interest in community affairs. Discussions will be held regularly, every month or two, and will be small groups that will hopefully lead to editorials or columns written by our staff members or help us improve our coverage. Some of the discussion might be held through email. Meetings would start this fall, with a targeted date sometime in October. Our intent is to foster discussion and community engagement and represent as broad a cross-section of Fitchburg residents as possible. If you’re interested but not sure, call editor Jim Ferolie or assistant editor Scott Girard at 845-9559 to talk it through. If you know you’d like to be part of it, send an email briefly telling us about yourself and your interest to fitchburgstar@ wcinet.com.
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