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<br />;;'bSarah ijol'flllan,wh9 traclts \
<br />l}g.<l~gered , . ! ~Pecje~ for., the
<br />DMfl" fQund, JhaLjp 1993 ~d
<br />1!}~, two endangered logger-
<br />n~ad shrikes ---,- birds the size of
<br />rrQbins ---,- were spotted one mile
<br />'~~>>t of the project.
<br />"n No one knew if they were.
<br />nesting or just passing through.
<br />H9ffmann wrote a letter, includ.
<br />e(~L in the worksheet, alerting
<br />Q~cials.
<br />, ;, Hoffmann said she doesn't
<br />have the power to stopa devel.
<br />Qpment, but her letter would be
<br />w'eighed with other considera.
<br />tiQns when' the local city ---,- in
<br />this case, Lakeville - evaluated
<br />the worksheet.
<br />What if the birds had been
<br />~een on the project site, instead
<br />of a mile away? Or had been
<br />Seen more recently than nine
<br />years ago?
<br />. Hoffmann wasn't sure. "We
<br />try to be conservative," leaning
<br />in..' favor of protecting the
<br />.ies, she said.
<br />he state Historic Preserva-
<br />'. Office also responded to the
<br /><}Faft worksheet.
<br />The definition of environ-
<br />mental impact has been broad.
<br />ened to protect "archeological,
<br />historical or architectural
<br />l'E\sources" near a potential site.
<br />In a letter, the office alerted offi-
<br />cials to two such sites nearby ----
<br />the Jerome Travis House and
<br />St. Joseph's Graveyard.
<br />, : The worksheet was complet-
<br />ed in September 2004.
<br />It was then given to the city
<br />of' Lakeville. and the heads of
<br />
<br />environmeptal. .' as
<br />boosting housing, costs
<br />. by 10 percent to
<br />17 percent.
<br />
<br />The original Brandtjen Farm,
<br />like almost all farms, h~d been a
<br />polluter. Farm chemicals
<br />leeched into the water table,
<br />and runoff carried poisons into
<br />rivers. Soil. erosion was con.
<br />stant. .
<br />Yet in spite of all the new
<br />streets, rooftops and driveways,
<br />the new development would
<br />produce only two-thirds the
<br />runoff.
<br />The man-made lake would
<br />hold storm water as a giant set-
<br />tling pond, allowing pollutants
<br />to drift to the bottom. The water
<br />recycling system would cut
<br />household water use in half.
<br />And the builders would even
<br />install a pump deep in the new
<br />lake, sucking cool water into the
<br />Vermillion instead of the nor.
<br />mal summer rain runoff that is
<br />too warm for the trout.
<br />It was the kind of' environ-
<br />mental triumph that would have
<br />been impossible in Brandtjen's
<br />day - the marriage of govern-
<br />ment regulation and private ini-
<br />tiative.
<br />Said Wayne Barstad, a DNR
<br />ecologist, "It's a net gain for
<br />Mother Nature."
<br />
<br />GOING FOR THE GREEN
<br />
<br />The weather had turned
<br />nasty two weeks ago when
<br />
<br />es into home costs-? . . - , _
<br />!}>;. ~:':-:;}-:-.'-'<;Y-t;\:'-;,:-5_- ", - - - ,;"f;~~:,'F::', -::{';!-;,<{:fT'~);'\":/-;';i - ;;';i:tt, ;(.r';-:'::: ;,,';';,_<, ,":'(,'1
<br />cost :ota typical Americ~n $ingle-falT\ily horni ,
<br />.of ',' i1dingitself is just 9yer half of the.. .
<br />final ~llle Rr!c~. nvironme J expenses a.r~ blended into fin~nc;ing.
<br />. permitting; site pr~~arationand other CQsts." .' '.
<br />
<br />.'N!arketing cost'
<br />$3~1'O
<br />
<br />Other costs
<br />
<br />Source: National Association of Home Builders
<br />
<br />Tim Malooly provided a glimpse
<br />of the future.
<br />Malooly, owner of Irrigation
<br />by Design, watched his rain-
<br />drenched crew install the water-
<br />recycling system to new homes
<br />at Tradition Development's
<br />Club West in Blaine - the same
<br />kind of system planned. for
<br />Brandtjen Farms.
<br />He described how a central
<br />computer monitors weather
<br />conditions to decide how much
<br />water to spray on the lawns.
<br />From spring to fall, in dry
<br />weather or wet, the grass would
<br />be greener, he said, and so
<br />would the environment.
<br />He watched as worker Alfre-
<br />do Garcia popped the end of a
<br />blue, 1 ~-inch plastic tube into a
<br />metal gripper, similar to a toy
<br />Chinese finger trap.
<br />Garcia hooked it to the blade
<br />
<br />of his vibrating plow, pushed a
<br />button, and the rattling blade
<br />dragged the pipe underground.
<br />In 30 seconds, it laid 40 feet of
<br />pipe.
<br />"This will keep everything
<br />green," said Garcia, rain drip-
<br />ping from his helmet onto the
<br />stocking cap underneath. "No
<br />one here has to worry about
<br />that every-third-day stuff."
<br />Next fall, Malooly will tackle
<br />a project three times bigger -
<br />Brandtjen Farm. The $3 million
<br />system will be the biggest such
<br />system in the state.
<br />"It's good for the environ-
<br />ment," said Malooly, who could
<br />see his breath as he spoke. "It is
<br />the right thing to do."
<br />
<br />Bob Shaw can be reached
<br />at bshaw@pioneerpress.com
<br />or 651-228-5433.
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