Wind Turbine (Bergey)

“Bergey” was constructed along the east side of our Richton Park Community Center, which was completed in 2010.

As the Chicago Southland area’s very first wind turbine, this US manufactured wind turbine stands 120 ft high and features a wind turbine’s cut-in speed of 5mph. It is designed to handle tornado force winds of 100+ mph. When the high winds subside, the system is designed to slow down to approximately 35 mph and the rotors turn away from the wind, continuing to produce power throughout the process.

Richton Park's wind-turbine offsets approximately 4% of the new community center’s estimated 250 kilowatt total electrical demand. The project total cost was approximately $99,000 of which half was paid through the Illinois Renewable Clean Energy Grant.

The system installed supports the adoption of renewable energy in our area in the following ways:

• This installation provides a showcase, public example of wind-generation technology, inverters and integration into building electrical systems which our planning and economic development departments may use in facilitating the introduction of these systems into new institutional and industrial development projects.
• This installation provides real-world data about wind power generation capabilities of the South Suburban area - data which is sorely needed to support investment in larger-scale wind-generation facilities.

Access Data of the Richton Park Wind Turbine HERE

The table below outlines the power savings to the new Richton Park community center as a result of the installation of the new Bergey wind turbine system.

*Source: US Department of Energy for average electricity price in Illinois in 2009