March 11, 2011
Maine
Maine
New Vineyard to decide wind power ordinance at Saturday’s meeting
Posted by Bobbie Hanstein, Daily Bulldog, www.dailybulldog.com 10 March 2011
Posted by Bobbie Hanstein, Daily Bulldog, www.dailybulldog.com 10 March 2011
NEW VINEYARD – On Saturday morning, residents will be making decisions on a 45-article that includes a proposed wind energy facility ordinance the planning board and selectmen have been working on all year. The annual town meeting is set to start at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at Smith Hall on Route 27.
Selectmen Board Chairwoman Fay Adams is seeking re-election for another three-year term after serving as a selectman for a dozen years. As is tradition here, nominations will be taken from the floor. Also up for election is the town’s road commissioner which Earl Luce Jr. has held for a number of years. Three, two-year-term planning board seats and another two, three-year-term alternate seats on the board will need to be filled.
The number one issue, said Selectman Doug Withey, will be the proposed ordinance regarding commercial wind energy turbines. Voters passed a moratorium to stall potential wind power development until an ordinance could be drafted. The proposed ordinance, initially based on the ordinance the town of Phillips passed last year, addresses issues of flicker, blade noise and speed, distance from surrounding property lines and more.
“The Planning Board has spent a lot of time on it over the last year,” Withey said. Once the planners completed the draft, selectmen then “tweaked” the draft to suit the town of New Vineyard, he added. A public hearing was held and copies of the ordinance are available for residents to get a good look at the draft before voting on it Saturday.
The proposed budget represents an increase of less than 1.5 percent over current spending. No big tickets items are proposed in the total budget.
“We’ve been able to hold it where it’s been,” Withey said. “In general, we’ve worked hard to keep spending down.”
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2011/03/11/new-vineyard-to-decide-wind-power-ordinance-at-saturdays-meeting/