Solar-Powered Library Shows that Nothing is Impossible

Was inspired by a Bloomington Herald-Times article last week. Faced with no budget for a library, the 540 citizens of Chrisney, IN just went ahead anyway.  See fuller coverage in the Evansville Courier-Press.

"They had no money to build a library, no viable existing buildings or partnerships for a shared storefront library, and their public library district adamantly refused to support capital or operating costs for a new branch." --Bill Brown, project architect on the Chrisney library building, and now Director of the IU Office of Sustainability

The building got land and maintenance commitment donated from the town, a grant from the Indiana Office of Community and Rural Affairs, and $66,000 in matching funds from the citizens of the town. (Remember, there are only 540 citizens in the town.) The result:

• A 9.6-kilowatt grid-tied photovoltaic system provides all the electricity needed
• A geothermal heating and cooling system heats and cools without combustion
• A passive solar design uses free sunlight to light the building and provide supplemental heat
• Transparent solar panels roof the Learning Power Pavilion and provide a classroom for the elementary school’s outdoor learning lab. 

Congratulations to the town of Chrisney, Indiana for their foresight, initiative and innovation.

Image Credit: Denny Simmons, Evansville Courier-Press

Comments

[Doug Wilson]

I missed this news in the H-T, but am glad to find it here. I've noticed that the IU Office of Sustainability has been in the news quite a bit lately promoting green projects, which is encouraging.

Thanks for sharing this!