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Project Updates for collection: Campus Sustainability Tour

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  3. Weekly Update - Daily Illini news article, Working Bikes, WCIA,

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Last week was a big press week. We landed on the cover of the Daily Illini on Thursday and then when we did our shipping event on Friday with Working Bikes WCIA showed up!  https://www.wcia.com/news/bike-project-helps-people-in-need/

    Good press all around!

    The shipping event went just about as well as it’s ever gone in my tenure. To start we had 200 fewer bikes to deal with, then Working Bikes provided twice as many staff as they have before, and to cap it off we had good turnout between my staff and volunteers. Unfortunately, volunteer and staff availability isn’t something I can count on every year.  

    For this week, today and tomorrow we’ll have LAS students in to volunteer. Other than that, it’s business as usual. We’re getting into finer and finer details of culling and organizing, getting into some deep cleaning, which I regret isn’t my strong suit but man does it make a difference. Next week we’ll be closed for Thanksgiving break.
    Also, a big thanks to Todd for grabbing scrap over the weekend.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 40
    Sales: $527
    Bike (refurb): 1 or $150
    Bike (B-a-B): 1 for $80
    Memberships: 2 for $60
    Tires/tubes: 10 for $53
    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  4. Weekly Update - Bike Month discussion, Fix-a-Flat, Working Bikes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Last week was uneventful. Without traffic during hours we were afforded a lot of quality sorting/scrapping time.
    On Wednesday I met with F&S, Urbana/Champaign, and CCB to discuss Bike Month/BTWD planning and to reflect on this year’s Light The Night. We’ve set the date for Bike To Work Day as Friday, May 1st.
    Thursday was our Fix-a-Flat class that was a no-show unfortunately. However, it’s pretty much winter so attendance was expected to be low.
    Big news for this week is that we’ll be hosting Working Bikes again this year to help us alleviate our abandoned bikes problem. They’ll be down this Friday from about 11am – 2pm packing up bikes to take back with them to Chicago. TBP and I will be there on Wednesday to clear out the good ones. I’ve got a couple staffers who said they’re available to help but I’ll put the word out with TBP to see if we can stir up some more volunteers. The more the merrier!
    The numbers:
    Visitors: 67
    Sales: 171.50
    Bike (B-a-B): 2 for $65
    Memberships: 2 for $60
    Tire/tubes: 1 for $5

     

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  5. Weekly Update - Working Bikes, Fix-a-Flat. Bicycle Food Drive

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Last week was productive! We continued counting everything and made some real progress cleaning up here at the shop. I’ll be doing a walk-through this week with TBP on what to keep and not keep. I went to the bike barn and counted bikes: We’ve got 277 to donate to Working Bikes and 56 to keep. Those numbers are rough counts and not exact. Things are relatively organized over there now. Once we set a date for them coming down I’ll move all the bikes we want to keep out of there. Fingers crossed for an easier go of it this time around!
    This Thursday we have our Fix-a-Flat class at 11am. Doubtful turnout will be great. It is November, after all.
    On Saturday the Bike Project is hosting a bicycle food drive. All donations go to Eastern Illinois Foodbank, and we’ll be promoting that over here at the Bike Center. It’s a fun event I’ve participated in for years. 

    This week we’ll keep paring down our stock and keep cleaning up in advance of our TBD move!
    The numbers:
    Visitors: 61
    Sales: $527
    Bike (refurb): 1 for $170
    Memberships: 2 for $60
    Tires/tubes: 10 for $53

     

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  6. Weekly Update - Working Bikes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Steady week, surprisingly. We even had a waiting list one day. Generally, though, things have slowed down. We’re still getting our inventory tallied up. We’ve got 6 bikes for sale with a few more to come.

    Last week I counted and moved bikes around at the warehouse. I’ll be doing more of that this week with the help of some of my student staff. I have reached out to Working Bikes about coming down to collect our unusable bikes. I’ll have a better idea of just how many bikes that’ll be after this week.
    This week we’ll be keeping on with the inventory/pitching junk, organizing the parts we keep, building up the good bikes, and the aforementioned warehouse bike fun.

    The numbers:

    Sales: $318
    Memberships: 5 for $150
    Tires/tubes:  8 for $30

     

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  7. Weekly Update - BFU status, What to Wear, Build-a-Bike

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Despite the cooler weather the shop was still relatively busy all week. On Thursday or Friday we even had a waiting list.
    In other news, we achieved Silver status for our Bicycle Friendly University! Congrats to all those involved.

    Last Thursday night we had our What To Wear class at ARC. It went well. 3 people stopped by and we covered all there is to riding in colder weather. Thankfully the people who came already had well-equipped bikes for the muck and suck of the winter elements so it was mostly talking details of clothing choice and how much salt/snow/ice can impair the function of your bike. Fun times!
    Also of note was our 3(!) Build-a-Bikes completed last week, two of which were done on Thursday. When that program works, it is empowering like none other. Unfortunately, it’s a big hill to climb.

    Elsewhere, I’ve been having Staff and volunteers count our used and new parts to compile a master list of inventory. It’s tedious but important to be able to figure how much stuff we’ll be moving the new CBC.

    Thanks to Todd for grabbing scrap over the weekend.

    This week we’ll continue to purge and pare down our inventory, build bikes, and keep plugging away at prep for our move.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 96
    Sales: $616.25
    Memberships: 8 for $240
    Bikes (refurb): 0
    Bikes (B-a-B):  3 for $266
    Tires/tubes: 17 for $76


    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  8. Weekly Update - Bike Maintenance 101, First visit free

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, We’ve slowed down enough to offer the First Visit Free option again, which has its plusses and minuses but is at least consistent with our website/literature on the topic.

    Last week we had our Bike Maintenance 101 class. Three attendees came, despite the cold and rain, so that was awesome. I think all of them had issues with their own bikes that precipitated their interest in the class and two of them said they’d be back to fix their bikes. A success!
    One bike was on the donation rack this morning. Another small bike but of good quality that’ll hopefully fix up quickly.
    I got in touch with someone from the Fine and Applied Arts to see if there’s any interest in using some of our scrap metal to keep it out of the dump but that was a dead end. I’ll still try to think of ways to keep our scrap pile a little smaller since we’re frequently at-or-beyond capacity. I think overall, we don’t have enough venues through which to repurpose a bicycle beyond B-a-B and Shop Builds. Something to think about.
    This week if we’re slow I’ll have the student staff do a deep dive on our used parts inventory to get a better picture of just how many bike parts we’re storing here. Additionally, we have our What to Wear info session at ARC on Thursday evening from 7 – 8p.

     

    The numbers:
    Visitors: 82
    Sales: $677.75
    Memberships: 14 for $420
    Tire/tubes: 14 for $79

     

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  9. Weekly Update - Light the Night, Fix-a-Flat, Bike Maintenance 101

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Much like the weather, we’ve been starting off cold and slow most days and heating up by the end. We’ve been weaving in and out of our FVF policy as I’ve felt bad turning people away when the shop is empty. But then, of course, in a blink of an eye we’re All Stands Full and members are waiting for stand time, which seems unfair.
     

    We had Light The Night on Thursday and that was a success from what I saw of it. Two CBC staffers helped out with the event in my absence as the shop was too busy for me to be able to get away for the whole event.
     

    We also had our Fix-a-Flat class on Friday. We had one participant. He was eager, engaged and said he’d be back for the next class, which was great.
    This week we have our Bike Maintenance 101 class on Friday and I’ll be doing a training with a new hire.
     

    The numbers:
    Visitors: 80
    Sales: $2,108
    Bikes (refurb): 3 for $640
    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $400
    Tires/tubes: 15 for $59

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  10. Weekly Update - Light the Night, Fix-a-Flat, Free Visits

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Light the Night

    All, Abbreviated week for me as I was out of town Thursday and Friday. I’ll check in with my staff this week and see how things went in my absence.

    There are 6 bikes on the outside rack from this weekend but unfortunately one or two are locked up as if it’s a regular bike rack. Whoops!

    This week will be busy as we have Light The Night on Thursday and our second Fix-a-Flat class on Friday. I’ll be talking up the F-a-F class incessantly this week in hopes of increasing participation numbers. For LTN I’ll be splitting my staff up between the shop and the event for the time that they overlap.


    We have been oscillating back and forth between allowing for Free Visits and not depending on how busy we are and how well-staffed we are at that time. So that points to things getting a little calmer (thankfully). Addressing the burnout my staff and I feel during these very busy beginning months will be a task for the winter.


    Moving all the kids bikes over to Salt & Light didn’t end up happening last week so I’ll shoot for getting those out this week. It’ll help with clearing everything out for our move. Exciting times!
     

    The numbers:
    Visitors: 96
    Sales: $1,242.50
    Memberships: 16 for $480
    Bikes (refurb): 2 for $225
    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $57
    Tires/tubes: 20 for $92

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  12. Weekly Update - Earn-a-Bike, Light the Night

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Last week was busy, per usual this time of year. TBP and I met with Circle Cycle to discuss their Earn-a-Bike program using abandoned bikes on campus. I interviewed two applicants and will be hiring them. The light sets for the LTN event arrived on Wednesday and were expeditiously moved to the Urbana shop, saving some space over here. Two bike donations were on the rack when I pulled in this morning.

    This week I’ll be taking the large pile of kids bikes over to Salt & Light to donate. I’ll also be meeting with F&S Sustainability and VeoRide to discuss bike share on campus. I’ll be out of town Thursday and Friday. I’ll arrange for the student staff to cover for me.

    The numbers:
    Visitors: 101
    Sales: $1,463.00

    Memberships: 19 for $570
    Bikes (refurb): 2 for $400
    Bikes (B-a-B): 2 or $120
    Tires/tubes: 28 for $107

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  13. Solar Farm 2.0 to Nearly Triple on Campus Renewable Energy Production

    Associated Project(s): 
    Solar Farm 2.0
    Issue Press Releases and Sustainability Reports

    Construction of a new 54-acre, 12.1 megawatt (MWdc) Solar Farm is approved by the University of Illinois Board of Trustees as the sole member of Prairieland Energy, Inc. Referred to as “Solar Farm 2.0,” the new utility-scale array to be located north of Curtis Road, between First Street and U.S. Route 45, will produce approximately 20,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) annually, almost tripling the university’s existing on-site renewable energy generation. Solar Farm 2.0 will generate the equivalent electricity use of more than 2,000 average American homes.

    Sol Systems, LLC, will design, build, operate, and maintain Solar Farm 2.0, for the duration of a 20-year contract which includes power purchase and land lease agreements, and an option to buy the system at the end of the term.

    https://emails.illinois.edu/newsletter/234685.html

  14. Next steps phone call

    Associated Project(s): 
    ECE Net-Zero Energy Building
    Solar Farm 2.0

    Morgan White and Joyce Mast discussed next steps for acheiving Net-Zero status for the ECE Building.  Mike Marquissee is working on a draft MOU about using Solar Farm 2.0 Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs).

    Joyce is seeking student input about what should go on the ECE Building interactive display.  If you are interested in working with her on this, contact her at jmast@illinois.edu. 

  15. Weekly Update - First Visit Free still suspended, Fix-it Stations need repair,

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Still busy! I went over to the warehouse last week and picked up some of the nicer, minimally-broken bikes over there. One only needed air in the tires and a few minor tweaks to be roadworthy. It’s already on the sales floor. Will hopefully have a few more of those to churn out this week. I also returned 3 Chambana Bikes to Neutral Cycle.
    We’re still suspending the First Visit Free policy here. We’ve been less than at-capacity for the first hour or two every day which is a harder sell but haven’t had too much trouble. I frankly wouldn’t mind seeing the suspension extended well into the fall as it helps to weed out people who aren’t at all interested in doing the work in the first place. I often wonder how many people are in the shop to genuinely learn and how many are here because we’re cheaper than every bike shop in town… Just something to think about.

    Got more complaints about the broken fix-it pumps. One guy on the phone seemed especially frustrated since he’d been to 3 – 4 pumps across campus. I sent him over to Neutral Cycle since he was in that neighborhood already.
    I have a couple interviews for some new hires this week. I already got a couple questions about Light The Night, which was surprising and welcome. I guess after 10+ years people are beginning to expect it. I also spoke with a U of I alum who’s interested in starting some similar DIY/education programming over at a small school in Indiana where he teaches. I gave him my card and flyer for TBP in case he wants to pick our brains a little more on the subject.

     

    The numbers:
    Visitors: 102
    Sales: $933.60
    Memberships: 18 for $540
    Tires/tubes: 20 for $116

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  17. Weekly Update - Long waitlist

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Last week was crazy busy. A couple of my staffers were sick or injured, leaving me well understaffed. We had a waiting list 2 – 3 deep every day. On Friday there were six or so people on the waiting list and I think most just abandoned the idea of being able to get any fixing time. Our model of first come, first served is a little problematic in that way—especially when stands are occupied with B-a-Bs that last the entirety of open hours. Down the line, separating open hours from B-a-Bs might be a good idea for the super crazy months.
    This week I am heading over to the warehouse to look at this year’s crop of bikes. Parking said there are hardly any good ones but I’m fine with that. Fewer total bikes is a win in my book!
    Thanks to Todd for grabbing scrap this weekend.

     

    The numbers:
    Visitors: 89
    Sales: $1,282.20
    Memberships: 25 for $750
    Build-a-Bike: 2 for $65
    Tire/tubes: 18 for $139

     

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Manager, Campus Bike Center

  19. Sustainable Student Farm Open House

    Associated Project(s): 
    Sustainable Student Farm
    Sustainability Engagement and Outreach

    The Sustainable Student Farm will host its annual Open House on Friday September 6 from 3-6 PM.  Tours of the SSF and Woody Perennial Polyculture projects will be offered as well as food items prepared by the U of I’s Housing and Dining Services featuring produce from the farm. The Student Sustainable Farm grows fruit and vegetables that are sold within the campus community.  Woody Perennial Polyculture is an experimental, alternative farming approach focusing on perennial tree crops instead of annual cropping systems.  Come out to listen, eat, and learn!

    September 6, 3–6:00 PM • https://www.google.com/maps/place/Sustainable+Student+Farm/@40.079908,-88.2189663,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x880cd6f002562e19:0x5ffbd796430d2fef!8m2!3d40.079908!4d-88.2167776

    Bruce Branham • Department of Crop Sciences

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