New Furnace Keeping Performers Warm, Bills Lower at Historic Building
$900
Green Lake, WI
Alliant Energy
Green Lake, WI – When winter was quickly approaching, the Board of Directors for Thrasher Opera House knew it had to replace its failing furnace. Working with FOCUS ON ENERGY®, they not only got a new furnace, but made an investment in energy efficiency that will save them money for years to come.
Thrasher Opera House is in Green Lake, one of the rural areas targeted by Focus on Energy’s Community Small Business Offering (CSBO) in 2018. The contractor the non-profit board contacted about its furnace, Condon Total Comfort, is a Focus on Energy Trade Ally and knew about the bonus financial incentives available through the CSBO.
Focus on Energy and Alliant Energy - one of the 107 Wisconsin utilities that fund the Focus on Energy program – provided Thrasher Opera House with the normal $600 incentive, plus a 50-percent bonus incentive of $300. The $900 payment helped offset the cost of investing in a high-efficiency furnace.
“We’re grateful for this funding, which helped our small non-profit organization buy a new furnace for our stage area.” said Thrasher Opera House Executive Director Maria Dietrich. “We’re also glad that Condon Total Comfort was able to install it just in time for the heating season. This will keep our performers warm and toasty throughout the winter!”
Installing the more efficient furnace will also save Thrasher Opera House nearly $400 a year on its energy bills.
Customers of the utilities that fund Focus on Energy are eligible for the energy expertise and financial incentives the program offers to businesses, homeowners, farms, schools and local governments. The most recent independent evaluation found every $1 invested in Focus on Energy programs creates $5.93 in benefits for Wisconsin, including economic benefits, reduced energy costs, and reduced pollution.
About Focus on Energy
Focus on Energy is Wisconsin utilities' statewide energy efficiency and renewable resource program funded by the state's investor-owned energy utilities and participating municipal and electric cooperative utilities. Focus on Energy works with eligible Wisconsin residents and businesses to install cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Focus on Energy information, resources and financial incentives help to implement projects that otherwise would not be completed. Its efforts help Wisconsin residents and businesses manage rising energy costs, promote in-state economic development, protect our environment and control Wisconsin's growing demand for electricity and natural gas. For more information call 800.762.7077 or visit focusonenergy.com.
About Thrasher Opera House
The Thrasher Opera House has been an important part of the Green Lake community since it was built in 1910, hosting movies and live performances, dances, basketball games and town meetings in its early years. It was eventually turned into a factory and then a warehouse. In 1994, a push began to restore the deteriorating building to its former splendor, and the Thrasher Opera House now hosts a variety of live performances and is one of three buildings in Green Lake on the National Register of Historic Places.
