From the Editor: Energy to spare?
Our cover story, by Senior Writer James McCarthy, delves into an issue that has vocal critics on both sides.
New England, especially Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, needs new sources of power. Nuclear power plants and coal- and oil-fired power plants, particularly the giants that can single-handedly provide electricity to cities the size of Hartford or Worcester, are being shut down at a rapid pace. When we look at what's going to fill in the gap, wind energy is one of the commonly discussed solutions. States are under mandates to find renewable energy sources.
Maine has an abundance of open space that can accommodate the giant wind turbines that would be needed to fill the void. But there's the rub: wind turbines may provide clean energy, but critics argue that the turbines are obtrusive, unreliable and ruin the view.
Which sets up a great debate. What would you rather have: An oil-burning power plant like the one on Cousins Island or a wind farm on a mountainside in northern Maine? The question is fraught with conflict of all kinds, from environmental to socio-economic. Add to that the economic factors that affect energy companies' decisions to invest and you have another layer of complicating factors.
To untangle the issues, Jim spoke to people on opposing sides of the issues. It's a good read and comprehensive as well.
Finance is only one lesson being offered by Colby
Colby College might sound like an unlikely place to anchor a story for the finance section. But, as correspondent Laurie Schreiber illustrates, Colby has joined a legion of colleges and universities that have turned to bonds as a way to finance growth. Low-interest rates have allowed Colby to get $100 million in financing without having to decimate the endowment. Combined with a more aggressive annual fundraising campaign, the college plans more than a quarter billion dollars in upgrades, from a new athletics facilities to additions to the arts campus to downtown redevelopment.
Colby officials were candid about the need to stay competitive in an arena where Colby is trying to attract the same caliber students that are touring Bates, Bowdoin, Middlebury, Wellesley, Smith, Haverford, Swarthmore and so on. They're all investing in their campuses.
It's a bewildering world, but one I've gotten acquainted with in recent years. With one daughter graduating from college this spring and another in her sophomore year, we have taken many, many college tours in the past half dozen years. I've seen first-hand how important it is to have new buildings, new programs, clean health centers, arts attractions, good sports programs and stable town-gown relations. It is a battle to attract students — and students can literally make up their minds in minutes flat. I saw how my kids would take one look at a place and say, “Let's get outta here!”
All of which makes what Colby is doing that much more compelling. President David Greene, who joined Colby in 2014, had a track record of raising money at the University of Chicago and he has hit the Waterville campus running.
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