​In the past decade, environmental, social, and governance concerns have moved to the forefront of several industries, including construction. Property developers today design buildings with sustainability in mind and prioritize environmental conservation in the construction process. Such a change of focus, however, comes with additional costs. Thankfully, there are government programs that help, such as the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program.

Administered by the US Department of Energy, the PACE program avails low-cost, long-term financing to developers, enabling them to implement energy efficiency projects. This includes installing LEED lighting, HVAC systems, windows, doors, cool roofs, and meters.

Close to 50 percent of the energy consumed in the United States goes to heating, cooling, lighting, and other building operations. The country generates most of this energy by burning fossil fuels. PACE solves this problem by extending critical financing to developers to make their properties energy efficient.

Besides energy efficiency, PACE also finances water use improvements and the installation of electrical infrastructure, like motor vehicle charging stations and power storage systems. PACE even finances building resiliency improvements. Examples are projects that make buildings resilient to fires and natural disasters like hurricanes, earthquakes, and floods.

Overall, these improvements increase the value and marketability of buildings while reducing operational costs. PACE also benefits local communities by creating jobs and helping municipalities meet their economic development and emissions reduction goals.

PACE’s terms are favorable to developers. The program funds up to 100 percent of project costs, freeing up cash for developers to use elsewhere. The repayment period can stretch up to 30 years, and developers pay back through charges added onto their tax roll.

PACE is a national program, but states have to create enabling legislation so their municipalities can establish PACE programs. As of March 2023, 38 states plus Washington, DC, have created enabling legislation for PACE financing to commercial building projects.

Illinois passed PACE-enabling legislation in 2017. Between then and September 2022, the state’s developers received $173 million in funding for commercial property projects. Commercial properties here include industrial, retail, hotel, office, and multifamily properties. States that have received higher PACE investments include California ($1.239 billion), Ohio ($682 million), and Texas ($407 million).

Chicago PACE is the organization that oversees the PACE program in Chicago. It distributes fixed-rate, low-cost financing of between $100,000 and $100 million to developers, with terms up to the estimated useful life of the building improvements. The funding covers the hard costs of the improvements, such as product purchases and labor, as well as soft costs like appraisals, design work, engineering, surveys, inspections, and permitting.

Property owners do not need to provide guarantees to access the financing. However, Chicago PACE requires them to be eligible to pay property taxes in the state and have no delinquencies on their mortgage debts for the property. They must also not have filed for bankruptcy in the last two years and must be current on their taxes, special assessments, and municipal charges for water and sewer services.

Developers interested in accessing this public financing can make an inquiry to Chicago PACE through its website at www.chicagopace.org. Following an inquiry, the process usually involves Chicago PACE reviewing the developer’s project to determine program compliance. If the developer is compliant, Chicago PACE will approve the financing and disburse it based on construction milestones.

Pickleball incorporates elements of both tennis and badminton. It is the fastest-growing sport in the United States and is much more accessible than tennis. It has a slower pace and smaller court size, which reduces the importance of overall fitness and levels the playing field for people of all ages and body types.

Despite its recent surge in popularity, pickleball has been around for over 50 years. Three fathers, including Washington State congressman Joel Pritchard and businessman Bill Bell, conceived the idea for the game on a Saturday afternoon in the summer of 1965 as an alternative to the usual summer activities with which their children were becoming bored. Pritchard had a badminton court on his Bainbridge Island summer property but no equipment, so the fathers played with ping-pong paddles and a plastic ball.

The families continued to play the game and tweak its rules over the weekend. Most notably, they lowered the net from 60 to 36 inches after realizing the ball could bounce on the asphalt surface. The first-ever pickleball tournament was held more than a decade later, in 1976, at the South Center Athletic Club in Tukwila, Washington, and the United States Amateur Pickleball Association was created in 1984 to help grow the sport. Pickleball debuted at the Arizona Senior Olympics in 2001 and was included at the National Senior Games Association in 2008.

USA Pickleball, the sport's governing body, had over 70,000 members as of February 2023. Moreover, the Sports & Fitness Industry Association, in its 2023 Topline Participation Report, noted there were nearly 9 million active pickleball players over six years old, up from 4.8 million the year prior.

Promoted as a more laid-back and social racquet sport, pickleball is played on a 20x44-foot court. Its layout resembles a tennis court in that it has left and right service areas on both sides with a seven-foot non-volley zone, known as the "kitchen," in front of the net. Tennis courts, however, are almost twice as long as pickleball courts. They're 78x27 for singles matches and 78x36 for doubles matches. The net is also two inches higher in tennis.

The equipment is also slightly different in tennis. A standard pickleball paddle typically weighs between 7 and 9 ounces, and the average tennis racquet is about 11 ounces. The plastic ball used for sanctioned pickleball matches weighs between 0.78 and 0.935 ounces, whereas tennis balls weigh between 1.975 and 2.095 ounces and bounce much higher.

There's also plenty of variance in the rules between pickleball and tennis. Overhand serves, the norm in tennis, are prohibited in pickleball. Instead, players have to serve the ball underhand to their opponent. There's also no double fault when serving, meaning players can make as many serve attempts as necessary without costing themselves points.

Scoring is also different in pickleball. In tennis, players need to win four points to win a game, six games to win a set, and two sets to win the match. Pickleball games are usually played for 11 points, and only the player serving the ball can win a point. Matches must be decided by two points.

​Sam Burns, a 26-year-old golfer from Shreveport, Louisiana, won the 2023 WGC-Dell Match Play at Austin Country Club on March 26 to claim his fifth career victory on the PGA Tour. Burns defeated Cameron Young 6 & 5 in the championship match to win the $3.5 million first-place prize and 550 FedEx Cup points. Young received $2.2 million and 315 FedEx Cup points for his second-place result.

Burns and Young were two of the four remaining golfers in the 64-player field to start the final day of competition on Sunday. In the semifinals, Burns played against defending WGC winner and world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler. He was 3 UP early in the round but trailed by two after Scheffler carded a birdie on the 10th hole. The two players were tied following 18 holes, meaning a playoff was needed to decide a winner. Burns, the 2022 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year, recorded a birdie in the third playoff hole to punch his ticket to the championship match.

Young, meanwhile, had to contend with four-time major champion Rory McIlroy in the semifinals. Playing for the first time with caddie Paul Tesori, Young had a great weekend despite his eventual loss to Burns in the final. He was 39-under par through his first 100 holes.

Like Burns, he had to battle back in the semifinals to secure his spot in the championship. Young trailed by two heading into the par-5 16th hole but cut the deficit in half with a two-putt birdie. He evened the score on the 18th hole and won the match in the first playoff hole.

Young performed well to start the championship match and held an early 1 UP advantage after the second hole, but Burns was dominant the rest of the way, thanks in part to his putting ability. He scored eight birdies during his last 10 holes and won the match 6 UP after finishing the par-4 13th hole. It was Young's fifth runner-up result in his last 22 starts worldwide.

Burns, meanwhile, recorded his first win of the 2022-23 season and fourth top-10 finish. He improved to 15th in the Official World Golf Rankings with the victory. Burns advanced to the knockout stage of the event by winning Group 13, which also included Seamus Power, Adam Scott, and Adam Hadwin, with three points. Young won Group 15, which featured Corey Conners, Davis Thompson, and Sepp Straka.

In the knockout stage, Burns scored wins over Patrick Cantlay (2&1) and Mackenzie Hughes (3&2) before reaching the semifinals. Young beat Billy Horschel (5&4) and Kurt Kitayama (1 UP).

McIlroy received $1.42 million for his third-place finish, and Scheffler earned $1.145 million. Fifty-one players made at least $100,000 in prize money for their performance.

The 2023 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play may be the last edition of the knockout-style tournament. Created in 1999, it has been the only annual match-play event on the PGA Tour calendar and has been played at the Austin Country Club since 2016. Sponsors, however, have been critical of the event and its format as many of the world's top stars are no longer playing by the weekend, which, in turn, can negatively impact TV ratings.