Maroney Commons Receives Award

December 1, 2011 was a day of national recognition for Howard, SD - in particular, for Maroney Commons, the restaurant, bar, hotel and conference center located on Howard’s Main Street.  On this day, Maroney Commons received the 2011 Rural Smart Growth Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  This is one of the five distinctions the EPA awards annually to communities across the nation that used innovative policies and strategies to strengthen their economies, provided housing and transportation choices, developed in ways that bring benefits to a wide range of residents, and protected the environment.

The Maroney Commons facility itself was built in a large part by using materials gathered from the vacant Main Street buildings that were demolished to make way for this LEED Platinum building.  For instance, the facility’s dining room floor was taken from the gymnasium in the old American Legion building, among many other materials, including the tin siding you see on the outside of the building.

Maroney Commons has solar panels, photovoltaic panels, a wind turbine atop the elevator tower, geothermal heating and cooling, porous outdoor pavement, rainwater capture and storage, and native landscaping.  In addition to its green technologies, Maroney Commons provided new jobs to Miner County residents and is projected to bring the local economy more than $6 million per year.

The award was accepted by Randy Parry, Past President of the Rural Learning Center, and Mary Stangohr, Chair of Miner County Development Corporation in Washington D.C.  A video about Maroney Commons was presented during the awards ceremony and is available to watch here (link).

Praise from EPA included, “Maroney Commons serves as a model for other rural towns looking to create vibrant community places that strengthen Main Streets, help residents learn new skills to compete in 21^st-century economy, and demonstrate environmentally responsible, energy efficient design.  Its message that ‘Rural is a good investment!’ can inspire other towns around the nation.”  The other communities that won Smart Growth Awards in 2011 were St. Louis, MO, Albuquerque, NM, El Paso, TX, and Normal, IL.

The Rural Smart Growth Award will be displayed in the corridor of Maroney Commons, a proud testament to the hard work and dedication of the community of Howard.