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  1. Weekly Update: Sustainapalooza, bike rental, Lincoln Avenue Corridor Study Open House

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Sorry for the delay, I was out yesterday. My staff tabled at the Sustainapalooza yesterday on the quad.

    Elsewhere, our visitor numbers are creeping up and we had two people originally interested in renting our 1-person bikes but upon further consideration, opted to try out our tandem to great success. Our donations have anecdotally ticked upwards as well, which is fortuitous timing as we had exhausted our supply of used 26” tires.

    Just received late notice about the RPC having an outreach/input session this afternoon on the Lincoln Avenue Corridor Study, which I’ll publicize to my staff and visitors. The more voices that can provide input, the better.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 44
    Sales: $682.65
    Bikes: 4 for $675
    Memberships: 2 for $60
    Tires/tubes: 9 for $68

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  2. 4/19/24 Project Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Zero Waste Woodshop

    Lowell Miller is updating a scope change for this grant to look at acquiring a machine to recycle 3d prints and other plastic that can then repurpose those materials into 3d printer filaments.

  3. Engagement iCAP Team Meeting Minutes 04-18-2024

    Associated Project(s): 
    Engagement iCAP Team
    Facilitate campus-wide sustainability events
    Major Annual Events
    Sustainable Events Program

    The iCAP Engagement Team met on 04/18/2024 to review 2020 objectives, and discuss iCAP 2025 planning. The team will continue to add to the living documents and finalize them in May. The team also discussed the upcoming Sustainapalooza event. 

    Attached Files: 

  6. Weekly Update: bike sale, TBP community ride

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Getting busier with the warmer temps. Working our way through a glut of single speed bikes, which are both easy to fix (thus far; knock on wood) and will be in demand come the fall. We’ve got around 20 or so bikes for sale, but the math is shifting from when we have more time to fix than help to now having more people in than down time to fix up bikes.

    Over the weekend The Bike Project held a community ride, which I attended. Great weather for some bumpy road meandering!

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 26
    Sales: $1,047.50
    Bikes (refurb): 4 for $685
    Memberships: 5 for $150
    Tires/tubes: 12 for $96

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  7. Weekly Digest

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    Rainy weather last week kept our visit numbers down at the beginning of the week. This allowed us some time to fix more bikes, and we’re up to 20 for sale bikes. We’ve also seen an uptick in drop-off repairs.

    We had another Bike Center on the Quad event last Friday and that went very well with a reported estimate of a dozen attendees. A success! Even though the team forgot to pack repair stands (whoops!).

    Saturday was Sustainapalooza ’25 and we were able to lend a bike for a Smoothie Bike—pedal to blend your smoothie! Happy to be able to facilitate that.

    This week we will host another instructional class, this time covering Gear Shifting 101.

     

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 60
    Sales: $461.50
    Memberships: 9 for $270
    Tires/tubes: 9 for $65

  9. Outdoor Bins Follow Up

    Associated Project(s): 
    Outdoor Recycling Bin Update

    Hi all,

     

    We have completed all outdoor bin location proposals. With all the photos it is a large document, so I have placed it on a shared Box. Please let me know if any of these locations need further clarification

    In response to your question below of completion by June 30 that is not possible.  Also, without knowing all of the locations it is difficult to give you an answer as to what the completion timeframe would be.  Below are the two scenarios depending on the proposed locations of the bins.

    Installing the bins on existing concrete:

     1.   Ironworkers can go to the site with the bins/post with two guys and install the anchors and the bins in 2-3 crew hours (4-6 hours total with two guys).

    Installing the bins on newly placed concrete:

     1.  This process will begin with the labor supervisor going to the site and marking the location.  1-2 hours
     2.  The utility marking crew would then be notified, and they have a 48 hour window to locate utilities.  1-2 hours
     3.  Laborers and operators go to the site and dig out the spot and place rock. 3-4 crew hours
     4.  Cement finishers form and pour the concrete and it needs to cure for at least 48 hours.  3-4 crew hours
     5.  Ironworkers can install the anchors and the bin once concrete has cured. 2-3 crew hours

    Depending on how closely the locations are to each other they may prepare 2 or 3 at once and rotate through those with the different steps above.  However, that is not always possible.

    I hope this helps to see how the two differ in time needed and to see how it really gets involved when the location requires new concrete.
    I wanted to reach out & reconnect on the topic of the black, metal outdoor bins. I believe we have 18 identified locations approved by Brent Lewis ready to be installed as soon as the shops are able (locations attached) – these all require concrete poured. We then have  ~56 more stored primarily in the Buenting Barn that we have not yet identified locations for, but will very shortly. Some of them will require concrete and others will not. We have WO# 10814481 for this project.  Pete is hoping to have the whole process wrapped up by June 30, 2024. I just wanted to put this back up on the radar and get a sense of whether we will be able to get these all installed by summer?

    I will be in contact soon regarding the locations of the remaining bins.

  10. Weekly Update: Walking Tour

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, Slow week with the bad weather. This week looks better. Friday we’re helping with the Campus Recreation Walking Tour and so will show off our space to some folks that probably wouldn’t visit otherwise—that’ll be fun.

    Also have a couple new staff starting this week.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 14
    Sales: $223.50
    Memberships: 2 for $60
    Tires/tubes: 4 for $35

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  12. Weekly Update: Donation, Busier week, Staff training

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, It’s April! Busier week over here with the warm spell. Tues/Thurs continue to be slower days and the 4 – 6p side of our hours remain more popular—anecdotally. I’ll dig into the numbers and see if that bears out.

    We are also trying out new sales tickets for our bikes, with the hopes that it’ll speed up that process as demand at the computer/square station will increase between our checkouts and the Adv. Rec folks.

    We received a large donation on Thursday, which we’ll continue to work through this week. Will also facilitate a staff training for a new hire. Plan to tackle some of the abandoned bikes as well.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 38
    Sales: $727
    Bikes (refurb):  2 for $275
    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $50
    Memberships: 4 for $120
    Tires/tubes: 2 for $19

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  14. Weekly update: M-F hours, IU sustainability visit

    Associated Project(s): 
    Campus Bike Center

    All, First week of being open M – F wasn’t blow-the-doors-off-busy. Tuesday was a dud, but Thursday picked up a little. Think it’ll take a little longer to get the word out on our new hours, and of course it’s always weather-dependent to a degree.

    We had a visit from Indiana University sustainability folks on Friday, which was good.

    This week is business as usual and next week it’ll be April! That undoubtedly will be a busy month.

    The numbers:

    Visitors: 26

    Sales: $934.09
    Bikes (refurb): 3 for $540

    Bikes (B-a-B): 1 for $50
    Memberships: 6 for $180
    Tires/tubes: 10 for $65

    Thanks!

    Jacob Benjamin
    Coordinator -- Campus Bike Center

  16. Dump and Run posters

    Associated Project(s): 
    Dump and Run

    I have attached files for the digital sign and the posters. I will get our marketing staff to add the digital sign to our boards in the next couple weeks, and I have asked them to add it to a future issue of Housing Insider. We already talked about the hall posters, but the larger foam board signs you can also bring to me and I will get them delivered to the halls. To cover all the halls we will need 20. I have seen them produced with the a build in fold out stand on the back, which would make it really easy to place in the halls as opposed to having to get a easel for each sign. But we can make either work.

     

    Let me know if you have any questions or thoughts on the design.

     

    BRYAN JOHNSON

     

    Hi Bryan,

     

    Thank you for sending these over! I wanted to follow up with a couple of items:

    • I just got notice from University YMCA that we should include the ampersand as opposed to “and,” as well as the used of ® after the name, because YMCA received approval for trademarking. Would it be possible to revise what was created with this new info?
    • Are there standard dimensions for the foam board signs? This isn’t something F&S created last year, so just want to make sure I understand the product we are talking about. Is this something that Housing communications would be able to assist with?

     

    Thank you,


    Daphne

     

    The marketing person who typically orders the poster board signs is out of the office today, but she is expected back tomorrow. She is supposed to get me an answer on how we can get them produced when she returns. Until then, here are updated creatives with the suggestions you provided. Let me know if these look good.

     

    BRYAN JOHNSON

    Attached Files: 

  17. Eastern Illinois Foodbank Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Dump and Run

    Hi Jenna,

     

    We met with Eastern Illinois Foodbank this morning, and they are excited about the prospect of working with us. F&S and Dining plan to take on the labor to bring the food donations to the foodbank. At the foodbank, the incoming product can be weighed so we can track that data. We are thinking of having boxes inside of the shipping containers (there will probably be 6-9 shipping containers this year, locations are pending) dedicated to food collection. They take the typical stuff, non-perishable, non-opened, but they do not have any issues with us brining expired food. Their team will go through and make the final call on what is distributed to the pantries. Most students probably won’t have super old food anyway, we suspect. UIUC will fill out a food drive form for the foodbank, and we will work on how to advertise this food drive effort at the residence halls – if you have any suggestions on that part, that would be awesome.

     

    Thank you,

    Daphne

  18. Communications Update

    Associated Project(s): 
    Waste Stream Characterization Study Phase 3

    Daphne, thank you so much for your efforts to wrangle the various building representatives! Did you happen to get a response from the Illini Union yet? Looking through the other polls, it seems as if someone from all the other buildings would be available for walkthroughs on either September 11th or 12th, so if the Union is available on either of those days, we’d like to go ahead and start scheduling appointments for those two days. Having all the walkthroughs on two consecutive days will minimize travel for Zach, who will be coming down from Chicago to participate. If the Union simply isn’t available either day, we’ll just schedule a time after the 12th and plan for me to handle that without Zach.

     

    Speaking of scheduling, might I suggest that we go ahead and plan to conduct the building audits during the third week of October (16th-20th)? Looking at the academic calendar, there doesn’t seem to be a reason for that week to problematic in terms of student volunteer availability. I know maintenance of Memorial Stadium is the responsibility of DIA, not F&S, but I did check the football schedule too. There’s a game on Saturday the 21st, which also happens to be homecoming. If for some reason that makes you think it would be best to avoid audit activities on Friday the 20th, we could alternatively conduct the audits during the fourth week of October (23rd-27th). That week doesn’t seem to have any conflicts with the academic calendar or football schedule. I know it’s still a few months away, but because Zach and Savannah both will be traveling to Champaign for the audits, the sooner we settle on a week, the easier it will be to plan travel and other details leading up to the audits. If you have a preference for the third or fourth week in October based on F&S staffing and schedules, please let us know.

     

    Thanks for your comments on the draft sorting categories! I read through them and accordingly made some slight changes to sorting category descriptions; see the attached file. I also replied to some of your comments or edited a few of the plastic-related categories, explaining my reasoning in the comments. I think this is in good shape! Just let us know if you have additional questions or suggestions.

     

    Thanks so much, and good luck navigating move-in this week!

    Joy

    Attached Files: 

  19. Waste Audit Communications

    Associated Project(s): 
    Waste Stream Characterization Study Phase 3

    Hello, all. My name is Joy Scrogum and I’m a member of the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) Technical Assistance Program (TAP). ISTC is working with F&S this fall to conduct waste audits of your buildings. Thank you to everyone who filled out the availability polls set up by Daphne Hulse, and to Daphne for gathering this information! I will be using the information you provided over the next few days to send representatives of each building an Outlook invitation for a walkthrough appointment with myself and my colleague, Zach Samaras, so be sure to watch your email inbox for those. Invitations will be for times on Monday, September 11, or Tuesday, September 12th. If the suggested time no longer works for you, please respond with suggested alternative times on the 11th or 12th as soon as possible, and we’ll do our best to accommodate you. Our goal is to schedule all walkthroughs on these two days to minimize travel expenses, so we really appreciate your cooperation. We are tentatively planning to conduct the building waste audits during the third week of October.

     

    Your walkthrough appointment with ISTC will take approximately half an hour of your time for each building involved. We will be interested in viewing the types and placement of trash and recycling bins, along with any associated signage throughout the building, and observing trash rooms, if applicable. We’ll want to fully understand the flow of landfill-bound and recyclable materials in your building, and the processes involved in collection from your perspective. We want to hear about any challenging materials and/or issues with contamination faced within your building, and we’d be happy to hear any suggestion you may have for improvements. We will also describe our audit procedures and logistics related to the collection of samples for the audits.

     

    We realize that building service workers are key stakeholders and are working with F&S to get a representative to share their perspective on operations at your building as well. When you receive your Outlook invitation, if you think there are additional individuals from your team who should be involved, feel free to forward the invitation to them. Please also edit your response to the invitation--or let us know in a separate email--where we should plan to connect with you on the day of the walkthrough (e.g., “just inside the main entrance on the north side of the building,” “outside at the loading dock,” or something similar).

     

    If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me. My office phone number is in my signature below, and to assist with communication on the days of the walkthroughs, my cell phone number is 217-979-7345. Thank you in advance for taking time out of your busy schedules to speak with us and show us your facilities!

     

    Sincerely,

     

    JOY SCROGUM

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