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Project Updates for collection: Student Sustainability Committee Funded Projects

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  1. Weekly Update: Build-a-Bike

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Busy as can be last week. We’re sold out of refurbished bikes and have only a handful of Build-a-Bikes available. We have 3 new hires in the pipeline, which’ll help. Meanwhile, this week is absolutely perfect riding weather—hope folks are getting out there!

    Our newer B-a-B model of handling some of the harder repairs has really helped accessibility to the program. With 3 this week alone, that’s more than we sometimes get completed in 6 months. Lowering barriers of entry is always a good thing!

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 187
    Sales: $2,027
    Memberships:  27(!) for $810
    Bikes (refurb): 2 for $345
    Bikes (B-a-B): 3 for $153
    Tires/tubes: 34 for $256

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  2. YMCA Dump & Run Numbers

    Associated Project(s): 
    Dump and Run

    During the Aug. 5 - Aug. 17 collections we had roughly 280 donation drop offs (increased over last year by about 30)

    • We conducted 39 furniture pickups on the two Saturdays
    • 118 volunteers worked 980 hours over the three weeks between collecting, sorting, pricing, the Big Sale and cleanup (7 more volunteers and 170 more hours than last year)
    • 12 staff members, including myself, contributed 267 hours at the Stock Pavilion
    • Roughly 3,700 people attended the Big Sale over the weekend, including at least 1,000 students (probably much more), compared to an estimated 2,500 total last year
    • The Big Sale grossed a little over $29,000, well past our budget goals, and an increase over last year (just under 23k)
    • What little that was left, which wasn't much, was mostly either recycled or donated to Salt & Light for additional reuse.

    Overall it was an excellent and incredibly smooth year!

  3. Weekly Update: Students are back, Build-a-Bike

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, I know students are back when bikes start selling without a test ride. You can only lead a horse to water…

    We’ll likely sell out of bikes this week. So, we’ll scramble to get a few more on the sales floor. And of course, always mention our Build-a-Bike program!

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 19
    Sales: $1,178.25
    Bikes (refurb): 4 for $785
    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $66
    Memberships: 3 for $90
    Tires/tubes: 10 for $59

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center
     

  4. Weekly Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Slow week. Not a lot of visitors, not a lot of bikes sold. Should be able to get a couple more bikes on the sales floor today, as we’re down to 10 or so bikes available.

    I’ll be out the rest of the week after today, but my staff will cover.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 13
    Sales: $465.50
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $190
    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $50
    Memberships: 3 for $90
    Tires/tubes: 10 for $74

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  5. Weekly Update: Slow week

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Slow week, except for the full family that brought in 4 bikes over 2 days so everyone could get riding. One of the kids was extra inquisitive on what bikes parts were and their function. Genuine interest is always appreciated!

    Worked through most of our donations of the last few weeks and now have to parse out the build-a-bikes from the for-sale builds to hopefully make the process easier for my staff.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 12
    Sales: $424.50

    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $175
    Memberships: 6 for $180
    Tires/tubes: 3 for $20

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  6. Weekly Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Had a visit from someone who works at the Idea Store in Urbana. We were able to donate an old junky wheel to them for an art project—always happy to repurpose bike parts we can’t use! Even more so to an organization that helps recycle as many things as they do.

    This week we’ll still be working through the donations we’ve accrued in the last few weeks.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 17
    Sales: $514.25
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $180
    Membership: 4 for $120
    Tires/tubes: 11 for $88

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  7. Weekly Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Uneventful week to report on. Real Feel temp all week was hovering near or above triple digits. Not a lot of folks out riding in that weather. We were closed on Wednesday for Juneteenth and had shorted hours on Monday due to a conference I was attending.

    Tonight is the Bike Project member’s meeting, which I’ll attend.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 6
    Sales: $308.50
    Memberships: 6 for $180
    Tires/tubes: 5 for $38

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  9. Weekly Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, Apologies for the delay. Pretty uneventful week. I was out at a conference on Thursday and Friday. My staff handled shop hours on Friday without issue. Made some more headway in the abandoned bike pile but also got half dozen or so direct donations as well. So, we’ve got our work cut out for us this week in processing all those.

    I spent some time last week turning bars/pulling pedals on the bikes we do have here in an effort to maximize space. We’ll spend staff time this week checking over those bikes, so they can be earmarked for the Build-a-Bike program and be much easier to identify by staff and the untrained eye.

    We will be closed tomorrow for Juneteenth and reopen on Friday.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 6
    Sales: $366.50
    Memberships: 1 for $30
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $90
    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $50
    Tires/tubes: 17 for $125

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  10. Weekly Update: Youth Bike Summit

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Normal week to report on. Over the weekend made some good headway on the last of the abandoned bikes, with the help of the Bike Project and Habitat for Humanity. One of our student staff members is headed to a conference in Italy for the entire month of June, so we’ll miss his insight as a Dutch bike enthusiast. Although,  maybe that is redundant of me to say.

    I will be attending the Youth Bike Summit in Pennsylvania from Thursday – Sunday this week. Should be a good opportunity to dive deep into bike programming of all sorts!

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 19
    Sales: $431
    Bikes (refurb): 1 for $135
    Memberships: 6 for $180
    Tires/tubes: 5 for $24.50

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  12. Aquaponics Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Bevier Café’s - Aquaponics System Demonstration Unit
    Illini Urban Farmers Hydroponics System

    Below is an update from Carter Phillips:

     

    The aquaponics system is still running strong and providing product to be served by our students at the Bevier Café.  In the last year we have been working on the Illini Urban Farmer RSO taking over production and maintenance of the system. This allows for a unique learning experience for any student interested in aquaponics and urban farming.

  14. Update from Betsy

    Associated Project(s): 
    Rainwater Management Plans

    Below is an update from Betsy Richardson:

    I am not on the icap resilience team committee however when the Farnsworth consultant is ready to share information with the surrounding cities MS4 leaders I will invite the consultant to the quarterly MS4 stormwater meeting (tentatively this fall or winter). I will also invite someone from the icap resilience team to the meeting, if anyone on this email knows the correct resilience team contact, please let me know. The city of Champaign, Urbana and the village of Savoy already have stormwater master plans so our hope from this collaboration is to share information and to attempt to align some of our stormwater goals.

  15. Update from Betsy

    Associated Project(s): 
    Rainwater Management Program

    Below is an update from Betsy Richardson:

    I am on this icap committee and an SSC grant was approved in 5/23 for this study and the project is moving forward in F&S Capital with Brent Lewis as the Project Manager. The Farnsworth consulting firm has been hired to complete the study and the engineer is currently reviewing GIS data and past university studies, and gathering additional data and discussing issues with university stakeholders. After this is complete, the engineer will prepare a draft master plan and submit to the owner for review/respond to comments, prepare a pre-final master plan/respond to owner comments, and then prepare a final master plan and submit to the owner tentatively in 12/2024.

  16. Weekly Update: Abandoned bikes

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, Shortened week with Memorial Day. Otherwise, business as usual. Subpar donations are still trickling in, so we’re able to continue to pass those along to Habitat. Took a week break on the barn bikes but will be ramping that back up this week. I believe the tagging of abandoned bikes on campus has begun, so we’ll likely get calls/emails about that in the coming weeks.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 28
    Sales: $656
    Memberships: 2 for $60
    Bikes (refurb): 2 for $365
    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $60
    Tires/tubes: 5 for $55

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  18. Weekly update: Bike donations

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center
    Collection and Donation of Abandoned Bicycles

    All, Last week, with the Bike Project, we were able to donate 20 or so bikes to a nonprofit church group that will send the bikes overseas. These were all bikes that would’ve otherwise been in the scrap yard, so it’s less work for us and helps keep more bikes out of the waste stream—a win-win! We continue to donate kids bikes to Habitat for Humanity as we do not have the storage space to keep those until our winter giveaway.

    Got a couple more new hires on board and learning the ropes.

    This week is business as usual as we try to replenish our sales stock.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 28
    Sales: $656.00
    Bikes (refurb): 2 for $$365
    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $60
    Memberships: 2 for $60
    Tires/tubes: 5 for $55

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  20. Bird Strike Survey Website

    Associated Project(s): 
    Preventing window-strike bird fatalities with energy efficient window decals

    Help document bird collisions with windows

    Millions of birds die annually from striking buildings, a global conservation issue. The U. of I. bird strike survey aims to document and prevent bird strikes. If you're a student, staff or faculty member at U. of I. interested in documenting strikes, contact jmokeefe@illinois.edu or vandoren@illinois.edu. We'll provide a phone-based app and protocol. Learn about the student-led effort here.

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