Wheeling bank will put in wind turbines

The developers of the new Devon Bank near the Westin Hotel want it to be as environmentally friendly as possible.

That includes solar panels on the roof and six wind turbines behind the building that will provide about 40 percent of the electricity for the business.

"It's going to be a pretty cool product," said interim village President Pat Horcher, who has been pushing for Wheeling to be on the forefront of green initiatives.

The turbines differ from the ones that look like large fans or windmills; these are on 30-foot poles and have three-foot diameter cylinders that spin when the wind blows.

Jerry Pocus, president of ATMI, which is constructing the bank, said the building will be fully LEED-certified. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification shows that a building is environmentally responsible.

"This is really the first green bank that we've done," he said.

Pocus said the Devon Bank owners had to weigh if the costly green initiatives would pay off in the end and decided the effort would be worth it.

He said the part of the roof that isn't covered with solar panels will be covered with grass.

At a recent plan commission meeting, Pocus and Michael Brown, the architect for the project, said the irrigation system at the building will consume half the water a normal system would.

Horcher said he wants to push for additional buildings like this in Wheeling, but, more than that, he wants the town to house the manufacturers of environmentally-friendly products, such as the turbines.

In fact, he said he wants to waive portions of property taxes so companies like that will move into Wheeling.

"If nothing else, it's jobs and it's industry for the village," he said.

The plan commission, at least, seems to back Devon Bank's efforts.

"We think it means a lot," said Ray Lang, chair of the commission. "Here's a step in the right direction - hopefully other businesses will catch on to this as well."