District 300 would shoulder 80 percent of the costs - as well as potential benefits and decision-making - associated with the consortium that would build wind turbines to generate the electricity. Dave Ulm, the district's energy coordinator, said the entire project is estimated to cost between $46 million and $50 million.

We're a windy state, and getting windier Illinois' more than fivefold increase in wind power capacity last year all came from wind farms in rural areas. "They're going to be placed in rural settings. It's just not feasible to put a wind farm in an urban area because of the land use. The buildings themselves also cause some issues," said Roger Brown, program manager for Western Illinois University's Illinois Institute of Rural Affairs. ...However, Bil Becker of a Chicago firm called Aerotecture is among those banking on a change in thinking. Becker said wind power does not have to mean a wind farm. He says wind power can be generated in cities.

Jim Meenagh, with John Deere’s corporate office, said the times are a-changing, fuel costs a fortune, and “many progressive people” are looking at alternative energy sources such as wind power. One example is John Deere Credit (JDC). The company is looking to support and expand wind power — and there are many opportunities in the Midwest, Meenagh said.

The Windy City earned the nickname from blowhard politicians, not its weather conditions, but the winds that blow across the vast expanses of farmland throughout Illinois may soon help power the energy-hungry Chicago area. A Texas company will formally present a $500 million wind power project at a Tuesday hearing in Bloomington of the McLean County Zoning Board, the latest step in a process that began more than three years ago. The result -- in terms of energy produced -- would be the country's largest land-based wind farm.

At least two alternative wind energy production means exist which can address concerns about the efficiency, aesthetics, avian impact and required land use of the huge bladed turbines currently causing local and area controversy. They are small, soundless and affordable, even rooftop-suitable for generating power in cities. The ``Quiet Revolution'' uses three narrow, curved vertical blades to capture the wind no matter how it is blowing. The turbine is 16-feet high and produces sufficient power to operate five energy-efficient homes. Unit cost is approximately $38,000.

The state's incentive package includes a $17 million grant from a clean coal technology fund that was included in the Fiscal Year 2007 budget approved earlier this year. State officials must be aggressive in courting this project and not letting it get away. Our large coal reserves are among the state's selling points.