February 23, 2008
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
Action filed that would force Bear Creek Township to look at revised project proposal.
A company that has battled court rulings in the past two years over building windmills on Penobscot Mountain filed an action Friday in Luzerne County Court to require Bear Creek Township to review the development plan.
Energy Unlimited Inc. requested the Court of Common Pleas to accept an updated land application for the wind project that would supply energy to 16,000 homes. The revised version includes detailed plans and drawings of how the project will be built.
Zoning use variance of the project was granted approval by the Bear Creek Zoning Board and affirmed by the lower courts pending appeal to the state Supreme Court.
If approved, the next step would be obtaining local permits.
The company wants to build 25 windmills, and call this plan “world-class” because it would provide clean and renewable energy for area communities, said project manager Ed Shoener.
According to Shoener, the project would, “improve the environment, help the local economy and generate much-needed tax revenue.”
More than $4 million in fees and taxes would be generated over the 30-year project life. It would cost $102,000 per year and increase over time for the windmills, according to Energy Unlimited. The initial building fee permit fee is estimated to cost $400,000.
Energy Unlimited first appealed the township’s denial of the land that was overturned by a county court judge in August 2006. The ruling decision was appealed to Commonwealth Court, which reversed in February 2007.
By Jen Marckini
23 February 2008
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2008/02/23/windmill-company-wants-plan-reviewed/