May 14, 2008
Illinois
Illinois
Hartsburg, Ill. – A continuation of a public hearing into the proposed Rail Splitter Wind Farm set for tonight at Hartsburg has suddenly been canceled.
Horizon Wind Energy, the Houston company behind the proposal, has officially withdrawn its application for a conditional use permit from consideration before the Logan County Board.
“We received yesterday a withdrawal from the applicant,” Logan County zoning officer Will D’Andrea said this morning. “They have officially withdrawn. They are going to research the issues regarding insufficient notification (about holding the hearings) and try to remedy those and then come back.”
The petition originally was on the county planning commission’s April agenda, but a group of wind farm opponents filed a complaint that not all property owners living within a certain distance of the land proposed for the permit had been notified of the meeting. The petition then was moved to the May agenda and received planners’ approval..
Last week’s public hearing in Hartsburg by the county’s zoning board of appeals featured combative commentary by attorneys from both sides before being called to a close because of the late hour. That meeting was scheduled to reconvene tonight before Horizon’s withdrawal.
The conditional use permits would allow the farmland to be used for wind turbine construction.
In the meantime, those who had prepared comments for tonight need not head out to Hartsburg-Emden High School after all.
“We are going to be there in case somebody does show up,” D’Andrea said.
Future meetings regarding the proposed Railsplitter Wind Farm will be announced when and if Horizon applies again for conditional use permits.
14 May 2008
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2008/05/14/wind-farms-petition-pulled-hearing-canceled/