September 19, 2012
Oklahoma

Apex set to hold open house Thursday

By Matt Montgomery | piedmontnewsonline.com 19 September 2012

Virginia-based wind energy company, Apex, is scheduled to host its first open house today from 6 to 8 p.m. at Piedmont First United Methodist Church.

Apex Development Manager Kent Dougherty said he and members of Apex will be discussing the Kingfisher Wind Farm project that could potentially become a part of the Piedmont landscape.

Dougherty also indicated that Monday, Sept. 24, Apex will take a group of city officials, councilmen and Planning Commissioners on a guided tour of Apex’s existing project in Calumet called “Canadian Hills,” but this outing is not open to the public.

The Piedmont Planning Commission recently voted to adopt a commercial windmill ordinance at their last meeting.

Some residents, including a man who spoke at the Planning Commission meeting have their doubts about the potential project while others are welcoming the idea.

Dougherty, representing Apex at August’s Planning Commission meeting said the Kingfisher Wind Farm project would be beneficial to the Piedmont community by giving back to the schools.

Apex released its estimates for annual property tax revenue projections and its wind energy value by school districts Tuesday.

The charts, provided by Apex, indicate that six school districts including, Kingfisher, Cashion, Piedmont, Darlington and Okarche are estimated to receive $2,899,000 per year from Apex infrastructure. However, Dougherty emphasized that these figures are estimates and only estimates at this time.

Another chart sent by Apex highlights the local tax revenue estimates based on Oklahoma Tax Commission guidelines as well as each county’s Tax Levy tables and respective Units
of Taxation.

According to the estimates, the total average annual tax revenue is $3,679,000; 18.73 percent or $689,000 would be allotted to Piedmont through county, Emergency Medical Services, school district and vocational technology.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2012/09/19/apex-set-to-hold-open-house-thursday/