October 28, 2011
Maine

Wind power moratorium gets hearing in Peru

By Mary Standard, Special to the Sun Journal, www.sunjournal.com 28 October 2011

PERU – Chairman Bill Hine told a hearing Thursday night that his Wind Ordinance Committee is waiting to see the impact of wind power developments in Woodstock and Roxbury before drafting regulations for Peru.

Hine said the turbines on Spruce Mountain in Woodstock and Record Hill in Roxbury are near enough to Peru that residents can get feedback on their environmental impact to help in writing regulations. Spruce Mountain will have 20 turbines; Record Hill, 22.

Hine said a proposed 180-day moratorium on wind power development will give the committee time to develop an ordinance that will have enough restrictions that could discourage a developer, if that’s what residents want.

“If you don’t want wind power, vote for the moratorium on Nov. 8. This will give the committee a better idea of what the town actually wants,” Hine said.

“The passage of the moratorium will give the committee 180 days to write an ordinance and no windmills can be built during this time. The Board of Selectmen can extend the moratorium if more time is needed to write the ordinance,” he said.

Jim Pulsifer asked why selectmen approved a meteorological test tower for Black Mountain before the hearing.

Selectman Kathy Hussey said they didn’t feel that the test tower would be the same as a string of windmills.

Hine said that would be up to what the town required of the developers and what was written in the ordinance.

Another item on the Nov. 8 ballot is the former Peru school. The article would give voters the choice of having the old elementary school at 30 Main St. torn down or leased to Friends of the Peru Elementary School to be run as a community center at no cost to taxpayers.

Choice 1 of the school article states: “Shall the voters of Peru authorize the selectmen to receive bids to raze (tear down) and landscape the old Peru school building.”

If voters approve tearing it down, the issue will be brought back for a vote next June on how to pay for it, Selectman Tim Holland said earlier this month.

Choice 2 of the article states: “Shall the voters of Peru authorize the selectmen to lease the old Peru school building to the Friends of the Peru Elementary School with the intent to make a community center with the terms of the agreement being written to protect the town. This choice would involve no taxpayer funding.”

There are still concerns that if Friends of the Peru Elementary School leases the building the town will still pay for insurance. Nick Waugh, chairman of the Friends committee, said the committee would pay the bill.

He reported that a turkey shoot this past weekend drew 34 shooters to raise money for the effort. The group will be doing more shoots and more fundraisers, he said.