The City of Beloit

One hour south of Madison, WI, an hour and a half southwest of Milwaukee, WI and less than two hours northwest of Chicago lies Beloit, Wisconsin [“Beloit, Wisconsin”]. Located along the Illinois-Wisconsin border, Beloit is the “gateway to Wisconsin’ [“City of Beloit”]. The first white trapper settled in Beloit in the 1820s and over the next 20 years, it was established as a town centered around Beloit College [“City of Beloit”]. One hundred and sixty-two years after being incorporated as a city by the State of Wisconsin, Beloit is home to just over 37,000 residents, “67% Caucasian, 15% African-American, 9% Hispanic/Latino, and 1% Asian-American, with another 8% from other ethnic or racial backgrounds” [“City of Beloit”].The economic high that Beloit reached during World War II as a steel and engine manufacturing center took a down turn in the 1970s [“City of Beloit”].

Community members came together as Beloit2000, and later Beloit 2020, to revitalize the City [Adams]. Over the past 20 years, the focus has been the City Center, Downtown and Riverside areas along the Rock River, but the focus is shifting for many in the community.

*from the Beloit City Center

Large cities across the country, like Dallas are coming to the call of their citizens [City of Dallas]. Global climate change factors are becoming apparent through our weather, natural disasters, and social issues. Citizens want cleaner, greener and more sustainable communities to live in. Farmers’ markets featuring local produce are the fastest growing aspect of the American food economy [McKibben, “Downtown Grocery”]. But even though eating local is the best way to foster community growth much of our food comes prepackaged from across the country and world. National companies are striving to make their processing plants sustainable and green to fill this request [“Chew on This”]. The U.S. Green Building Council established a certification process for sustainable and environmentally friendly designed buildings in the year 2000. LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification for current and existing buildings works on a points system in six groups covering:

Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy & Atmosphere, Materials & Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality and Innovation in Design [“Frequently Asked Questions”].

Beloit has heard its citizens. Over the past year, three different sustainable projects have been started by individual initiative, Kettle Foods, the Center for the Sciences and a local grocery. On 17 December 2007, the Beloit City Council approved a resolution for the Eco-Municipality Sustainable Guidelines for the City of Beloit [“Eco-Municipality”]. These guidelines go hand in hand with the beautification and restoration of the city that has been headed by Beloit 2020 since the late 1980s [Adams]. The guidelines, though vague, are a start to changing the city. They are as follows:

• Reduce dependence upon fossil fuels
• Reduce dependence on chemicals and other manufactured substances that can accumulate in nature
• Reduce dependence on activities that harm life-sustaining ecosystems
• Meet the hierarchy of present and future human needs fairly and efficiently [“Eco-Municipality”]

These goals, along with the individual initiative of community members, have begun to change the face of Beloit. Three new sustainable buildings are revolutionizing the city in one short year.

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Works Cited

Adams, Jeff. "A Vision for the City Center." Beloit 2020. Beloit 2020, Beloit, WI. 5 Feb. 2008.

"Beloit, Wisconsin." Map. Google Maps. 21 Mar. 2008 <*www.maps.google.com*>.

"Chew on This: "Green" Junk Food." NBC Nightly News. MSNBC. 2 Jan. 2008. 11 Mar. 2008 <*http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/22464701#22464701*>.

"City of Beloit." City of Beloit. 2008. Beloit City Council. 19 Mar. 2008 <*http://www.ci.beloit.wi.us/*>.

City Of Dallas. "Green Dallas: Building a Greener City." Green Dallas. 2008. City of Dallas. 19 Mar. 2008 <*http://www.greendallas.net/*>.

"Downtown Grocery." 2008. 19 Mar. 2008 <*http://www.downtowngrocery.com/*>.

"Eco-Municipality Sustainable Guidelines for the City of Beloit." City of Beloit. 29 Feb. 2008. City of Beloit. 18 Mar. 2008 <*http://www.ci.beloit.wi.us/index.asp?Type=B_LIST&SEC=%7B93F0C20D-1D1B-4691-B5AF-6AFAE41BEB2E%7D*>.

McKibben, Bill. "First, Step Up." Editorial. Yes! Spring 2008. <*http://www.yesmagazine.org/article.asp?id=2271*>.

ABC Supply Company Brings Green Technology to the World

ABC Supply Co. Inc is the largest wholesale distributor of roofing, siding and window supplies in the United States and it is headquartered in a central area of Beloit, Wisconsin. ABC Supply opened its first three stores in 1982 and within twenty years it had reached billions of dollars in revenue and hundreds of operating stores. Today, ABC Supply is still thriving with almost 350 stores and a place on the Forbes list of America’s Largest Private Companies [“History”]. Prior to his death in late 2007, Ken Hendricks, former ABC Supply Co. CEO made it an initiative of the company to invest in green technology. It was once said about Ken Hendricks that, “[Ken] didn't build new buildings, he took old buildings and made them into something beautiful."[Terrien]. According to the State Line News, ABC has become a leader in “green roofing technology, solar roofing material and the wind-turbine industry.” [Weiss].

*from Green Grid Roofs

One of the most successful products that ABC Supply has developed is their GreenGrid roof system, which is displayed on the roof of the ABC Supply headquarters. The technology will also be used at Beloit College for the Center for the Sciences. Green roofs can help lower water run-off, work very efficiently and are easy to replace. The green roof retains a high amount of rainwater, which reduces the amount of water that goes through public or private storm sewers and can decrease erosion [“GreenGrid”]. A GreenGrid system can absorb 90% of each inch of rainfall [Luckey]. Green roofs are more complex and more expensive than a traditional roof, but the money is made up in energy savings and other environmental impacts.

*from Green Grid Roofs

In a March 2007 article, the State Line News wrote that, “According to the U.S. Green Building Council, it is estimated that if all the roofs in [Chicago] were green roods, the urban temperatures would be reduced be 12 degrees.” [Weiss]. The GreenGrid system on ABC’s headquarters is 80,000 square-feet and reduces temperatures in the building by 20 degrees [Scott]. In the last ten years, ABC’s GreenGrid roofing technology has been used all around the United States and in 2008 will be installed on the roof of one of the buildings built for the Beijing Olympics. Green roofs have also become a huge urban trend in Europe, where they have thrived since the 1970’s [Scott]. Hendricks also planned to invest in wind-turbine manufacturing stating, “We hope to be the largest tower manufacturer in the world. Right now we are totally sold out for five years.” [Weiss].

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Works Cited

GreenGrid. Beloit, Wisconsin: Weston Solutions, 2006.

"History and Corporate Milestones." ABC Supply. 2008. ABC Supply. 16 Mar. 2008 <*http://abcsupply.com/About.aspx?id=532&ekmensel=15074e5e_56_0_532_4*>.

Luckey, Shannon. "The Rise of Green." Beloit College Magazine Summer 2007. 15 Mar. 2008 <*http://www.beloit.edu/~belmag/07_summer/07_summer_content/07_summer_green.html*>.

Scott, Cheryl. "Environmental Efforts a Part of Business." Beloit Daily News. 9 Oct. 2007 <*http://www.beloitdailynews.com/articles/2007/10/09/news/news05.txt*>.

Terrien, Rick. "SustainableWork." 4 Jan. 2008. 21 Mar. 2008 <*http://sustainablework.com/blog/2008/01/ken-hendricks-beloit-wi-and-world.html*>.

Weiss, Lori. "Going Green is as Easy as ABC." State Line News 21 Mar. 2007. 19 Mar. 2008 <*http://www.hendricksgroup.net/news/SLN_032107.pdf*>.

Conclusion

The City of Beloit, Wisconsin is a blooming community that has dedicated itself to protecting the environment. We feel (and our sources like Dr. Spencer agree), that to find city of its size in the United States with so much dedication to sustainability and green initiatives, across all sorts of industry, is very rare. When ABC Supply developed its GreenGrid roofing system, it took the lead in what is now a world-wide trend: green roofs. These environmentally friendly marvels can save companies thousands of dollars per year in utility bills. In addition, they also help the environment by absorbing water and being built from natural and recycled materials. When Beloit College decided to install the GreenGrid system on their new Center for the Sciences, an LEED certified building, they showed a clear dedication to sustainable initiatives. Kettle Foods, one of the newest companies to move to Beloit, has been dedicated to sustainability and protecting the environment at their home plant in Salem, Oregon. Now they bring the first green food factory in the United States to Beloit, adding to the other projects in the city. Beloit is also making great strides in supporting its local farmers and producers through its summer Farmers' Market and new grocery. It will foster awareness of the Earth as a habit and lifestyle.

The City of Beloit has shown in its practice and it its law that it is dedicated to sustainability and now industries and community members are following their lead. Beloit is prospering and proof that small communities can collaborate with with individual initiatives to better the environment and the lives of its citizens. Beloit has learned that by going green, the future is endlessly brighter.