May 4, 2013
Rhode Island

Whalerock wind turbine hearing set for May 21

Sun Staff | The Westerly Sun | May 3, 2013 | www.thewesterlysun.com

CHARLESTOWN – A Zoning Board of Review hearing on Whalerock Renewable Energy LLC’s request for a special use permit to build and operate two wind turbines will be held Tuesday, May 21, at 7 p.m. at Charlestown Elementary School.

The long-running quest of Larry LeBlanc, owner of the 81-acre parcel on the north side of Route 1 between King’s Factory Road and East Quail Run, and his son-in-law, Michael Carlino, to build the twin 262-foot turbines received a boost in R.I. Superior Court last month. That’s when Associate Justice Kristin Rodgers denied appeals by the Town Council and abutters of the property to halt the turbine project, which has been before town officials and boards since 2010. She also ruled that the Planning Commission had only advisory power over the petition, with that body’s September 2010 hearing and subsequently issued opinion serving as the necessary advisory.

LeBlanc, who said Wednesday he will present consultants and experts on wind power at the hearing, is hoping to begin construction on the turbines sometime this year if he wins the zoning board’s approval.

LeBlanc’s efforts to develop the parcel have in the past included an affordable housing complex and a proposed sale to the town as open space. A portion of the 10 acres across Route 1 he once owned was sold to the town for the construction of the town’s police station.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2013/05/04/whalerock-wind-turbine-hearing-set-for-may-21/