Zoning Board supports wind farm application

MINONK — A descendant of the original settlers of Worth Township urged the Woodford County Zoning Board on Wednesday to support an application by Navitas Energy Inc., to build a 52-turbine Roanoke Wind farm.

The board unanimously gave its support to the permit without dissent after Wednesday’s public hearing. While supporting the special use permit for the construction of 52 wind turbines generating 100 megawatts of energy, the board added a couple of conditions, including the payment of $10,000 to the local fire protection district.

Pamela Shuck-Hoehne, who until recently lived in Germantown Hills,was the only person who spoke at the hearing. None of the six people who had signed up with the county zoning office to give testimony attended the hearing.

“This is not only a win-win situation for Mother Earth, but the county will also benefit by Navitas Energy bringing in revenue and employment opportunities,” she said.

The Shuck and DeVries families had pastured the land in eastern Woodford County for years.

“When it came time for the railroad to sell the land, my ancestors had a vision — to expand their livelihood and cultivate the land,” she said.

The Roanoke wind farm would be built on 6,000 acres west of Interstate 39. The land was first leased in 2005 and again last year. The Roanoke turbines would be 410 feet tall.

“The roads will be left in better condition than they are today,” said Wanda Davies, head of development for Navitas in the Midwest.

Navitas is a subsidiary of Gamesa, the world’s fourth largest turbine manufacturer. Although Gamesa is a Spanish company, all the turbines would be manufactured in the United States.

“There’s an estimated “$950,000 a year in property taxes, based on 2008 tax rates,” Davies said, adding that the local school districts will have much to gain if the project was to go forward.

Davies said about 60 to 80 jobs would be created during construction of the wind farm, and of these about 10would be permanent jobs for those who will be in charge of maintenance.

There is a tentative start date of spring 2010 with a completion date of 2011. That would depend on economic conditions, which is why the company asked for the permit to be extended up to 18 months. One of the conditions the zoning board put in place was that Navitas would have to complete construction within 18 months of the issuance of the building permit.

Navitas also has contacted the Clayton Township road commissioner to work out agreements for the road improvements, Those have yet to be finalized. Company officials also will attend Monday’s Roanoke Village Board meeting to explain their plans.

Last week, the zoning board also granted Navitas a special-use permit for the Woodford County portion of a proposed 100-turbine Minonk Wind Farm, which is expected to generate200 megawatts of electricity annually.Seventy-five of the turbines would be located in Woodford County, while the rest would bein adjoining Livingston County.

The Roanoke and Minonk wind farm proposals now must go to the Woodford County Board for approval.

By CATHARINE SCHAIDLE
OF THE JOURNAL STAR

pjstar.com

1 July 2009

Tags: Wind power, Wind energy

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