February 4, 2013
Minnesota

Wind turbine dispute lingers; April date set for summary judgment in a lawsuit that began in 2011

By Brett Stursa, Editor | Lakeshore Weekly | 2/4/2013 | www.weeklynews.com

It appears that the dispute between the city of Orono and homeowner Jay Nygard regarding his wind turbine is winding its way back into court.

Nygard said he learned last week that the city filed a new summary judgement scheduled for April 5 to have him take down his turbine.

A brief supporting the summary judgment is expected to be submitted to the court by the city’s attorney in early March, according to Orono Mayor Lili McMillan.

The lawsuit dates back to 2011, when the city of Orono sued Jay and Kendall Nygard after they installed a wind turbine in their yard on Rest Point Road after being denied a building permit by the city to construct it.

The city denied the request because it stated that wind turbines weren’t listed as being permitted in the city’s zoning ordinance.

Jay Nygard argued that the wind generator isn’t prohibited in city code so he should be able to install it.

After a district court judge ruled in the city of Orono’s favor and ordered the wind turbine to come down, Nygard appealed the decision.

In October of last year, the appeal’s court reversed the district court’s ruling regarding the installation of the wind turbine and remanded the issue back to the city.

The court ordered the issue back to the city for further consideration of the permit application.

At its Nov. 13 meeting, the Orono City Council adopted a moratorium that prohibited the approval of applications for an accessory use or structure while it studied the issue.

Nygard said he had the turbine ready for inspection on Dec. 1, 2012, and then it was approved by the state electrical inspector and Xcel Energy.

“I just have a hard time understanding why the city would usurp the rights of all property owners in Orono in a very weak attempt to control us after they were proven to be wrong,” said Nygard.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/02/04/wind-turbine-dispute-lingers-april-date-set-for-summary-judgment-in-a-lawsuit-that-began-in-2011/