The proposed state law would increase the amount of money the state charges ratepayers to support energy-conservation projects, which of course has ratepayers riled up. No one wants to pay more for something than what they already are, I get it.

But, in order to commit to renewable energy projects — which I think are important in order to find better solutions for mitigating negative effects on the environment — money has to come from somewhere.

No one’s going to step up and offer to pay for renewable energy projects, and since renewable energy will ultimately (hopefully) benefit ratepayers, I think it’s OK to charge them more to pay for these projects.

But, I don’t think just any project should be paid for with this money.

If we’re going to be charging hard-working Wisconsin companies extra to pay for these projects, they’d better be well-researched endeavors with solid reasoning behind them. Done correctly, these projects could generate jobs and create a burgeoning industry for state workers and companies.

So, cry wolf all you want, critics. I highly doubt you’re going to pick up and leave Wisconsin over this. Even if you did, you’d probably end up in another state looking at similar legislation.

You can’t beat ‘em, so join ‘em. Make sure that money goes to projects you support and believe in.

The amount a home is appraised at can make or break a homeowner’s budget. It can mean the difference between being able to afford the house and having to move out.

So it’s only fair that the men and women determining our homes’ values should be expected to keep up with advances in home construction, right? As a homeowner still slightly taken aback each month when I pay my mortgage, I wholeheartedly say “Yes!”

If an appraisal is too high, it can leave the homeowner with inflated taxes and a mortgage amount that will be hard to get back when reselling. If the appraisal is too low, it will hurt the homeowner when they go to sell, especially if money they put into the home isn’t fully reflected in the appraised value.

Considering that buying a home is usually the largest purchase one will ever make, its scary to think that, according to a recent CNN article, about a quarter of all appraisers only have the most basic of qualifications.

This causes many problems, the latest of which is a lack of appraised value for property owners that make green improvements.

In the construction industry, it’s been clear for some time now that building green is quickly becoming the standard. So why haven’t appraisers gotten the message that many people see value in such improvements?

There is a definite lack of continuing education requirements for appraisers, something that needs to be remedied quickly to keep up with the spate of green construction already under way.

A high school education and half a semester of course work isn’t going to cut it anymore.

British TV host James May stands by the LEGO house he helped build in 2009 for the BBC show “Top Gear.” The house was taken down in September when creators failed to find a permanent home for the creation. (Photos courtesy of www.topgear.com)

It had a LEGO bed, a working LEGO toilet and even a charming LEGO cat named Fusker.

James May’s Lego House in England featured functioning bathroom amenities, including shower, toilet and sink.

The short-lived LEGO house built in 2009 in the English countryside was the life-size representation of many adults’ childhood dreams. Sadly, it was torn down in September when its creators failed to find a permanent home for the massive creation.

On a positive note, at least all of the pieces were given to the LEGOLAND theme park in England as a “LEGO set for the nation.” Annual builds are planned to raise money for the United Kingdom’s National Autistic Society.

Now, a community group in Ottawa, Ill. is planning its own life-size creation built from a childhood favorite: Lincoln Logs. The group hopes to set a world record later this month when it attempts to build the world’s tallest Lincoln Log tower.

I was always more of a Lincoln Log girl myself. It was a lot easier to plow ahead with construction when there were a limited number of options. LEGOs tended to intimidate me with their variety of shapes and colors.

Regardless, I’d love to see this trend of toys made adult-size continue. Where’s my Barbie Dream House? I’m also looking for a life-size pink convertible to go with it, but I’ll settle for the dream house for now.

A house made completely of life-size LEGOs stands in a vineyard about an hour from London, England, in 2009. The house was torn down this past fall when no one stepped forward to take responsibility for it.

Cheryl Palmer looks out a window of the World Center Hotel, at the World Trade Center construction site in New York. With rooms boasting views directly out on the construction, the hotel’s proximity to the site of the Sept. 11 attacks is being used as a marketing tool. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

Given the countless hotel choices in New York City, it’s hard to imagine anyone would choose to stay right next to a massive construction site, but that is the hope of Club Quarters Inc., the company opening the World Center Hotel next to the site of the Sept. 11 attacks.

Obviously, the site is going to be a tourist destination for many years to come. But is it really appropriate to market a hotel using people’s grief? I’m not so sure.

On the one hand, yes, there are going to be legions of mourners and visitors coming to see the site of the attacks, people that will need a place to stay. So why not capture some of that business?

But, it’s the way the hotel is going about it that rubs me the wrong way.

Club Quarter’s vice president told the Associated Press, in an attempt to detract from claims the company is trying to profit from tragedy, she thinks people will come there to “celebrate” the site.

Really? I don’t think anyone’s celebrating much of anything when they’re there. It’s not like there’s beautiful replacement buildings to marvel at. And from the sound of things there won’t be for some time.

Is anyone really going to stare out at the slow-moving construction and feel inspired or joyful? I highly doubt it.

Which brings us back to using peoples’ grief as a marketing ploy. I know business is tough, but I think it’s tacky and wrong. There has to be some mention of the hotel’s proximity to the site — if nothing else, to warn visitors they’ll be sleeping next to a massive construction site — but it can and should be done in a more tasteful manner.

For more coverage on the World Center Hotel, pick up a copy of tomorrow’s Daily Reporter print edition.

Zach's Cabin is an upscale restaurant in Colorado that is accessible only by sleigh or ski. (Photo courtesy of bachelorgulch.com)

When designing a business, typically the idea is not to make it nearly impossible for customers to get there.

But for some businesses, the challenge of getting there is part of the allure.

While in Colorado this weekend, I had the pleasure of dining at Zach’s Cabin, an upscale restaurant accessible only by sleigh or ski.

Perched atop Bachelor Gulch Mountain, about 20 minutes from Vail, Zach’s Cabin is about as tricky a business to get to as they come. Yet, it’s very popular.

In the Milwaukee area, the legendary Safe House is another example of a business that benefits from being hard to find. Were it not for the mystique surrounding this spy-themed bar and restaurant, I doubt it would be very popular at all.

Sure, it’s filled with fun gimmicks, but it’s a dark, cramped little place that is best viewed through the haze of a few stiff drinks. Yet, it is popular with tourists and locals alike.

It’s a risk to design a building that is purposely difficult to get to, but in cases like these it can be a goldmine.

So, Wisconsin architects and business owners should take note: make your next project nearly impossible to find or get to.

It’s sure to be a success.

Unfortunately, you’d be incorrect.

As a cub reporter, I was responsible each winter for tracking down some world-weary doctor to issue the annual “don’t stick your hand in a snow blower” warning. Because just as Fourth of July brought its annual wave of blown-off fingers, winter snow brought its yearly round of mangled appendages.

Sad as it was to issue these yearly “no duh” precautions, time has proven that people do not learn from their mistakes, or even the tragic mistakes of others. People continue to ride in cars without seatbelts. Smokers are everywhere, even though we all know cigarettes will kill you.

Unless it’s required (and often, as is the case with seat belts, even when it is required), some people will not take simple precautions to prevent injury or death.

So, the ongoing debate over whether to institute an official OSHA guideline mandating workers measure flammable gas concentrations before doing any activity that creates sparks is frustrating to see.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board issued seven guidelines this week designed to prevent workplace explosions. The main recommendation: “Always monitor air for the presence of flammable vapors before doing any ‘hot’ work, which includes welding, grinding or other spark-producing activities.”

Seems like common sense, right?

But as a jaded reporter who’s written one too many stories about tragic accidents resulting from human carelessness and overlooked precautions, I plead with OSHA to just issue a mandate, no matter how silly it may seem, and get it over with.

Why wait until another horrible incident occurs to take action?

Dyala Husseini Dajani, 68, visits a Muslim cemetery where her ancestors are buried, near the construction site of a museum dedicated to tolerance and coexistence, in downtown Jerusalem. Descendants of Muslims buried at the cemetery said recently they would petition the U.N. against the building of the museum over a part of the cemetery. (AP Photo/Dan Balilty)

Even for a museum dedicated to tolerance, there is no peace in Jerusalem.

The volatile city has been up in arms for years over plans for a Museum of Tolerance that, in a cruel bit of irony, is to be constructed on the site of a centuries-old Muslim cemetery.

Now, famed architect Frank Gehry announced he is quitting the project, yet another setback for the controversial plans.

Gehry claimed he and his staff are just too busy with other projects to participate any longer, but I think the project’s three-year court battle and cemetery controversy have a lot more to do with the decision.

While I certainly think building a museum dedicated to tolerance on the sight of Muslim holy land is a bad idea (though, to be fair, a parking lot was already built on the site decades ago), I also think it’s sad to see what could be a wonderful project take jab after jab in the media and public perception.

Is the site fraught with complications? Yes. But, to be fair, most of Jerusalem is loaded with issues of one kind or another, given the divided factions and battles over holy land. I think it’s brave of the museum’s creators to even try to build the project there.

If suitable agreements can be reached on the site and the project is not set back too far by the loss of Gehry, I think it could be a wonderful symbol in a land that needs reminders of what intolerance creates.

Progress on the Hood Canal Bridge Project rolls forward in this recent photo, as the second of two transition trusses moves out of the construction hangar at Oregon Iron Works in Vancouver, Wash. (Photos courtesy of the Washington State Department of Transportation)

Despite Al Gore’s desperate pleas, I know plenty of people who still complain about what a pain it is to recycle.

My answer to that is: Really? It’s that hard to toss something in one can versus another?

If you think recycling a soda can is difficult, imagine trying to recycle a nearly mile-long section of bridge — makes that soda can seem pretty miniscule, doesn’t it?

My hat’s off to Grant Rogers, owner of Marker Developments, the company that now owns the portions of the old Hood Canal floating bridge that may be reused on Vancouver Island in Canada. Finding a home for such a large expanse of material is no small (pardon the pun) feat.

The sun rises over the Hood Canal Bridge. This section of the bridge was replaced in June 2009.

The idea of recycling old bridge parts is becoming increasingly popular. California is looking at reusing parts of the old Bay Bridge and North Carolina has an entire department dedicated to bridge reuse.

New York City even transformed an old railroad bridge into a public park, reusing both the space and some of the materials. And in Ohio, recent Kent State University graduates are working on a plan to reuse a section of Cleveland’s Detroit-Superior bridge.

There’s plenty of projects in the Milwaukee area that could benefit from this sort of outside-the-box thinking (Hoan Bridge anyone?).

It’s time to show Wisconsin’s recycling prowess.

Steven Sobiek drives a hybrid electric car Feb. 3 owned by the city of Columbus past the site of an environmentally friendly apartment complex the city is planning. Sobiek is the director of economic development and energy sustainability for Columbus. (Photos by John Krejci)

There is no map.

For Wisconsin’s 23 energy-independent model communities, gut feelings and limited research are the only guides when deciding how best to spend state grant money to improve energy efficiency.

Wisconsin’s Energy Independent Community Partnership pilot program, administered by the Office of Energy
Independence, has so far given 10 grants to the model communities — some collaborated on applications —
ranging from $13,500 to $60,000. Money is used for everything from buying electric vehicles to installing light-emitting diode lights citywide.

These communities are the leaders in Gov. Jim Doyle’s 25×25 program, which seeks to generate 25 percent
of electricity and transportation fuel from renewable sources by 2025. As of press time, 136 communities statewide have taken measures to support Doyle’s 25×25 goal. Some model communities are further ahead than others, but all are working toward the same goal: a greener Wisconsin. This month, Wisconsin Builder highlights three model communities that are leading the charge toward a more sustainable future.

The city of Columbus (City Hall pictured below) has become a state leader in energy efficiency. A committee of community members created the Greater Columbus Energy Task Force, which includes the past and current mayor, private employers, the local hospital president and membership from the school district.

Full speed ahead

Columbus takes citywide approach to going green

Drivers have two parking options in Columbus: with or without a plug.

A leader in sustainable living, Columbus, a city of 5,000 people in south-central Wisconsin, is one of 23 communities that received grants through the state’s Energy Independent Community Partnership pilot program.

Deciding how and where to spend the money is difficult due to the lack of direction, said Steve Sobiek, director of economic development and energy sustainability for Columbus.

“There are no road maps,” he said. “We are the first generation of leaders, and there are no examples in Wisconsin of doing this. We have to accept the fact that there’s a risk, but we need to mitigate those risks and do our homework.”

Columbus was one of the first pilot program communities in the state, Sobiek said. The city aggressively mines many sources of grant money to help meet the state goals without burdening taxpayers, Sobiek said.

For instance, a $225,000 Community Development Block Grant, paid for by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, helped cover the cost of converting all of the city’s streetlights to LED. The conversion is projected to save $10,000 and 221,908 kilowatt hours per year.

“We were able to procure the grant so the city was not on the hook for $225,000,” Sobiek said.

In his dual role as leader of economic development and energy sustainability, Sobiek is breaking new ground for Wisconsin. His is the only office in the state to combine those areas, he said.

In that position, Sobiek aggressively pursues a blend of economic growth and sustainability. His work is in conjunction with a committee of key community members who form the Greater Columbus Energy Task Force, which includes the past and current mayor, private employers, the local hospital president and representation from the local school district.

“They really set the tone,” Sobiek said. “We’ve had a lot of progress for exciting programs.”

The city, for example, landed grant money to help pay for two Prius hybrid plug-in vehicles and an electric truck for public works functions, moves made to reduce fuel consumption, he said. The city also was among the first to adopt a neighborhood electric vehicle ordinance allowing electric cars on city streets, and the parking lot at City Hall is equipped with electrical outlets.

Bridging the gap between municipal and commercial interests, a public-private partnership between Columbus Water & Light and Brookstone Homes is building up to 10 energy-efficient homes in the city to educate the public on green building practices. The first house was completed in December and sold in January.

The city’s residential construction permits held steady in 2009, Sobiek said, which shows the city can promote sustainable practices to save energy and spur economic growth.

“We’ve been really successful encouraging economic development with energy sustainability,” Sobiek said.

“We’re bringing people from the region to Columbus.”

An energy-efficient model home in the city of Columbus demonstrates two different solar power systems. One is purely electric and the other uses a solar-powered water heater.

Group effort

Smaller communities work together to land grant money

Residents stroll through Bayfield Memorial Park on a summer evening. Like Columbus, the Bayfield area already was pursuing green goals before pledging to become a 25x25 community. (Photos courtesy of The Bayfield Chamber of Commerce)

For some of Wisconsin’s smallest and northernmost communities, banding together to solicit grant money is the only option.

The northern Wisconsin city of Bayfield, home to about 600 people, partnered with neighboring Chequamegon Bay as well as Bayfield and Ashland counties to land state money through the 25×25 program.

“We went together because none of us could have afforded to do this on our own,” said Larry MacDonald, mayor of the city of Bayfield. “We gained a lot of synergy by meeting regularly.”

Grant money helped pay for initial assessments of energy use within each area. Establishing the baseline information, MacDonald said, immediately revealed which areas needed improvement.

“We all now know how many miles we drive each of our vehicles, the mileage, what kind of fuel, and we know the same thing about every building,” MacDonald said. “One interesting thing some areas found is there were buildings they didn’t own anymore but they were still paying the electrical bills.”

The waters of Lake Superior crash upon brownstone cliffs near Bayfield. The city of Bayfield is home to about 600 people.

The baseline studies, MacDonald said, helped communities plan for the future. Projects under consideration include converting some lights to LED and installing solar water heating at the Bayfield County Jail. Wind energy is being explored on Madeline Island and on the mainland, and Xcel Energy’s Bay Front Power Plant in Ashland is converting a third boiler to biomass production.

Like Columbus, the Bayfield area already was pursuing green goals before pledging to become a 25×25 community. In 2008 and 2009, the city launched a “green it/clean it” campaign and gave every household a recycled cotton shopping bag with organic cleaning supplies, a compact fluorescent lamp bulb, a day pass for rural transit and other items.

“The thing that was really amazing is it changed people’s buying habits,” MacDonald said.

Some people got so excited about sustainable practices, he said, they wrote a book called “Earth Care: Choose, Consume, Recycle – Leading a Sensible Life in Bayfield.”

Community support for going green continues to grow, MacDonald said. Several hundred people attended a renewable energy fair in Bayfield last spring, he said. And the city now offers a mini-grant program that gives as much as $250 to families that want to make green improvements to their homes.

“One of the most creative was five families who pooled their applications to buy one high-quality electric lawnmower to replace their five old gas mowers,” MacDonald said.

Through the state grant money and city programs, he said, Bayfield is offering residents incentives to move forward on specific improvements and join in communitywide efforts. The ongoing effort is a learning process, MacDonald said, but a worthy cause.

“People come and give us ideas all the time,” he said. “It’s been fun, but a lot of work.”

In it for the long haul

Brown County officials go green one project at a time

The Brown County Community Treatment Center includes amenities such as solar hot water heat and high-efficiency HVAC. (Photos submitted by Brown County)

Brown County officials are confident they can generate 25 percent of electricity and transportation fuel from renewable sources by 2025, even if it takes the full 15 years to do so.

“One project is not going to generate 25 percent of renewable energy,” said Bill Dowell, director of facility management for Brown County. “Each one will bring in some renewables and offer some savings.”

By committing to Gov. Jim Doyle’s 25×25 plan, Brown County signed on for the long haul. And with the county’s growing commitment to sustainability has come increased patience for payoffs, Brown County Executive Tom Hinz said.

A new food court at NEW Zoo of Brown County features sustainable landscaping and a certified green kitchen.

“We used to think if there wasn’t a payback in six to seven years, it wasn’t worth it,” he said.

Data collected for the 25×25 plan will help guide the county in future decisions to build new facilities, generate or buy renewable energy and set new policies, Dowell said.

Even before committing to the state goals, Brown County was on board with green, he said. Three new county buildings with green features were completed in 2009: a new food court with sustainable landscaping at the county zoo; a 911 communications center featuring day lighting and water conservation; and the Brown County Community Treatment Center, which includes amenities such as solar hot water heat and high-efficiency HVAC.

A county landfill gas-to-energy project converts methane gas to electricity that is sold to Wisconsin Public Service Corp.

“We probably have 10 years of usable gas (there),” Dowell said.

The county’s new 911 communications center was designed to LEED Silver standards and includes features such as day lighting and a water conservation system.

An Energy Independent Community grant has helped the county identify and develop a long-range sustainability plan, Hinz said. Even small changes such as training new employees on energy-efficient driving practices can make a difference, he said.

Plans on the horizon, Dowell said, include the purchase of new electric or hybrid vehicles for county use and construction of a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-certified building at Austin Straubel International Airport.

Conducting a thorough analysis of cost and savings for each project is time consuming, but that is where the county’s long-term view comes in handy.

“Keeping the momentum going is a challenge, especially now with budgets the way they are,” Hinz said. “But if we save money on energy, that’s money we can use for another program.”

International Olympic Committee Vice President Chiharu Igaya (fifth from right) is seen with other IOC members at Sochi's main train station during a February 2007 visit to the Black Sea resort of Sochi in southern Russia. Sochi will host the 2014 Olympic Winter Games. (AP Photo/ Mikhail Metzel)

After tonight’s long overdue finale of “The Bachelor,”I will finally have my life back.

Between the Olympics, American Idol’s hours-long episodes several days a week and the never-ending soap opera that’s been this season’s Bachelor, it’s been all I can do to keep up with my DVR lately.

Yes, I realize I could simply not watch as much TV, but please, it’s winter in Wisconsin. Snowy days and freezing temperatures are exactly why I have a deluxe cable package.

So it was with slight nostalgia, but much relief, that I bid farewell to the 2010 Winter Olympics last night. I’ll miss watching Shaun White soar and figure skaters crash, but plans are already well under way for another batch of drama-filled events in Russia in 2014.

Russia has pledged to spend $11 billion to transform its resort town of Sochi to an area worthy of the 2014 Olympic Games. With that money, Sochi will, in three years, “do as much as (it) would normally do in a century,” said Mayor Anatoly Pakhomov.

Suffice to say, there will be an enormous amount of construction going on there over the next few years, construction U.S. companies would be smart to get in on in any capacity they can.

Imagine the massive amount of supplies, workers and equipment needed to bring the miles of new roads and other infrastructure planned, along with all the new venues.

I’m curious to see how this massive construction project turns out, but for now I’m content to resume my regularly scheduled programming and wait for 2014.