April 30, 2014
Maryland

Crisfield begins eminent domain proceedings

Written by Liz Holland, Staff Writer | The Daily Times | Apr. 29, 2014 | www.delmarvanow.com

CRISFIELD – City officials have begun eminent domain proceedings to take over property that sits in the middle of a planned wind turbine project at the sewage treatment plant.

Crisfield City Council members approved the measure because acquisition of the land on Seventh Street is necessary for the operation of the turbine, said city attorney Michael Sullivan.

Sullivan and other city officials said they could not comment on why they resorted to using eminent domain – the right of government to take private property for public use – or the status of negotiations with the property owners, Weldon and Zelda Massey.

The property is an unoccupied concrete block apartment building and is one of four needed for the turbine which will power the sewer plant.

The city has already purchased the other three neighboring properties and demolished the buildings on them.

The 750-kilowatt wind turbine will be built at the end of Dixon Street next to the sewer plant, but the adjacent properties are necessary for its operation, said Crisfield Mayor Percy “P.J.’” Purnell.

The legal proceedings to obtain the property won’t delay the start of the project, which will first involve pouring a 25-foot concrete base and installing electrical wiring, he said.

“I expect it to start soon,” Purnell said. “We’re just waiting for weather.”

The turbine itself is being built to order and will take several months to complete.

Once the project is finished, the turbine will provide power to the sewer plant and is expected to save the city $150,000 to $200,000 a year in electrical costs.

Although the turbine is expected to generate more than enough electricity to power the sewer plant, it must still connect to the grid since the plant needs a consistent source of electricity, and the turbine’s output could fluctuate depending on how windy it is, officials have said. The city also can sell the excess electricity back to the grid.

The project has been scaled down from its original design after officials at Patuxent River Naval Air Station in St. Mary’s County expressed concerns that turbines will interfere with radar systems.

The turbine now planned for a site will be under the 300-foot height limit set by the Navy.

Funding for the turbine won approval from the Maryland Board of Public Works last year. The city will receive $4.1 million – $3.6 million from the state’s Department of the Environment and a $560,000 federal Community Development Block Grant.

The Crisfield turbine project is unrelated to a proposed $200 million commercial wind farm in the Westover and Marion Station areas.