February 9, 2011
Illinois

Plan Commission recommends wind ordinance

Derek Barichello, My Web Times, mywebtimes.com 8 February 2011

The Streator Plan Commission did not need to expend much energy Tuesday on a proposed ordinance regulating private wind turbines within the city.

The commission recommended the city council approve the ordinance preventing wind towers from exceeding 125 feet tall, requiring a 1 1/2 times the total height setback from the property line and not allowing building-mounted units to exceed 10 feet higher than the highest point of the structure where they stand. A provision requiring screening the structure from view was waived.

The ordinance will require the city council’s approval at its next meeting to be put in place.

It also regulates shadow flicker, noise, vibrations, tower types, electromagnetic interference, minimum ground clearance and application to the city for a wind turbine.

City Engineer Jeremy Palm said there are currently no permits within the city for wind towers. He said some businesses have researched wind energy as an alternative and Ken Alessi, vice president of manufacturing at Transco, told The Times two weeks ago his company was one of them.

Palm also said small private units can be purchased at hardware stores and sold at Ace Hardware downtown.

“The city is being proactive,” said Paul Nicholson, Streator City Manager. “We want to set reasonable regulations for citizens to utilize alternative energy without creating a problem or nuisance for neighbors.”

In other items, the plan commission recommended approval of an amendment to its signing code. This recommendation asked if the face of a sign is changed, the city will need to be notified.

“For instance if a sign says ‘pizza’ and you want to change it to say ‘gasoline,’ you don’t have to pay a fee or get another permit, you can just notify the city of the change,”Palm said.

The plan commission also swore in John G. Tkach as a new member.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/02/09/plan-commission-recommends-wind-ordinance/