The Delmar Loop recently added another building to its collection when Washington University opened the newly renovated Corner Building at the intersection of Delmar and Skinker boulevards in August.

The building opened after approximately three months of work. Still waiting to be added to the structure are seven roof-mounted wind turbines.

The corner building at Skinker and Delmar features windmills and other energy-saving features. The building is the latest in a string of green-themed Wash. U. buildings (Paul Goedeke | Student Life)

The building will house businesses in the ground floor and 16 apartments in the second and third stories. The wind turbines will have a production capacity of 14 megawatt-hours of power per year. The turbines that will be installed are smaller and quieter than traditional models.

The Corner Building joins a long list of University-owned or operated buildings that were designed or retrofitted with sustainability in mind, such as the Danforth University Center, Seigle Hall and South 40 House. Many building materials were reused in the renovations.

“Our rationale for actually doing the [Corner Building] was to continue the movement of the Delmar Loop east and create a positive and vibrant experience—pedestrian experience—for people in the loop as they move east,” said Mary Campbell, assistant vice chancellor for real estate. “Obviously, having that building sitting there vacant doesn’t help.”

Junior Peter Murrey, president of Green Action, said he believes the windmills on the Corner Building are a move in the right direction for the University.

“We’ve always been pushing for renewable energy on campus—be it solar, wind, geothermal,” Murrey said. “I’m really encouraged to see the University take these steps.”

Campbell emphasized that the project also shows the University’s support for its surrounding community.

“To the extent we could play a role in helping get that developed and helping be a catalyst for further development along Delmar, that’s something that we as a University should take a leadership role in doing, and we chose to do it,” Campbell said.

Murrey noted that sustainability needs to be an integral part of how the University interacts with the surrounding community.

“It sends a very good message to the community,” he said. “I think the best thing we can do is serve as a model for showing how to do these things right.”

A message about sustainability was a top priority in planning the project, Campbell said.

“We [wanted to] play somewhat of an R&D function and actually explore alternative technologies and aesthetically create something unique and interesting for the Loop,” she said. “That’s a role that we constantly research.”

To this end, Green Action will be hosting a statewide conference on climate-change and clean-energy policy called Power Shift, modeled after the national conference of the same name that took place last February. Green Action expects 750 Missouri students to attend.

Richard Axelbaum’s previous statement about energy—that there is no silver bullet to deal with the energy crisis—is accurate but can be expanded, Murray said.

Murrey said he believes that retrofitting the older buildings on campus and incorporating new technologies is important in addition to planning new buildings to be energy efficient.
“I would always love to see more,” Murrey said. “I’d be curious to see how [the Corner Building] fits into the University’s sustainability plan.”

Last November, proposition C passed, requiring 15 percent of Missouri’s power to come from renewable sources by 2021.

Murrey predicts that 15 percent of power will likely come from elsewhere in the state, like the northwestern part, which has better wind sources.

“St. Louis is an interesting place. We don’t have the room to make these big wind farms or solar farms,” he said. “I think the best thing we can do here is pump up as many small-scale projects as we can,” he said.

Still, Murrey stressed the importance of efficiency.

“The best unit of energy is the unit of energy you don’t use,” he said.

Murrey praised the University for its own efforts toward a more sustainable future, such as the dramatic reductions of energy loads from campus buildings.
“I think Wash. U. hasn’t really talked enough about how much it’s done with sustainability,” Murrey said. “It’s something to be proud of.”