October 11, 2006
Indiana
Indiana
The St. Joseph County Council gave thumbs up Tuesday for a wind-measuring tower south of Mishawaka and a brand new drugstore north of South Bend.
It also welcomed Phyllis Baldoni as its newest member. She replaces her late husband, Joseph A. Baldoni, who had represented District H for more than 25 years before his death on Sept. 22. Mrs. Baldoni will serve until Dec. 31, the end of her late husband’s term.
The wind tower will be constructed in a field at 59171 Ireland Trail, just south of Inwood Road.
Bruce Squadroni, business manager for School City of Mishawaka, said the 150-foot tower will be 8 inches in diameter, with measuring devices every 30, 40 and 50 meters.
It will not be a windmill, he said, but an antenna secured with guy wires. It will gather data to see if wind turbines might be a viable source of energy in the future.
John Wolar of Alternate Energy Solutions will gather data from the tower, Squadroni said. It will cost roughly $10,000 to build, he said, with money from School City’s capital fund.
A wind turbine, by contrast, would cost between $700,000 and $800,000 to build, but could result in energy savings of about $100,000 a year, Squadroni said. The turbines could last 25 to 30 years, he said.
As for the new drugstore, Walgreens plans to tear down its store at Darden Road and Indiana 933 and build a modern new store there, according to Michael Danch, of Danch Harner & Associates.
The council approved rezoning of two houses east of the store that will become part of the Walgreens property.
Danch said demolition of the existing store and houses could begin later this month, and the new store could be open in the late spring.
The new store will be an investment of $1 million to $1.5 million for Walgreens, he said. It will have more modern facilities, including a computerized pharmacy, than the old store, which is only about 10 years old.
During construction, Danch said, Walgreens hopes to keep its pharmacy open by relocating it to a former deli just south of the Steak and Ale Restaurant.
Staff writer Nancy J. Sulok:
nsulok@sbtinfo.com
(574) 235-6234
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2006/10/11/st-joseph-county-oks-wind-tower-drugstore/