April 20, 2019
Pennsylvania

Zoning hearing held on wind farm project in Packer Township

by Katie Byrne - Thursday, April 18th 2019 - fox56.com

WEATHERLY, CARBON COUNTY (WOLF) – More than 20 wind turbines could be coming to Packer Township, but not without some pushback from people who live there.

Hundreds of people attended the first zoning hearing on the Broad Mountain wind farm project Wednesday night.

“It’s an 80 megawatt wind farm with 21 wind turbines. It’ll be a lot of work. With economic benefits as well as environmental benefits,” said Robert Miller, the Project Manager for the Broad Mountain Wind Farm.

The Packer Township municipal building isn’t big enough to hold everyone, so the hearings are being held at the Weatherly Area Middle School.

“Well, it’s very civil that’s for sure. Which is the way it should be. Things should be discussed, not argued,” said Dennis Hinkle, of Packer Township.

During construction season, the Broad Mountain wind farm project would bring 80-100 jobs to the area.

But some people are hoping it never gets to that point.

“I think they are obnoxious looking. These things are gonna be 658 feet tall from what I understand by the drawings that they have. That sticks way up in the air. It’s like having Empire State Buildings all over the Broad Mountain,” said Hinkle.

Hinkle is 79 years old, and a life-long resident of Packer Township.

He says there’s a reason the zoning hearing is so packed.

“There’s a few in here that are probably for it, but the majority I would say are against it,” said Hinkle.

The first to take the stand was the township zoning officer, then the Project Manager, Robert Miller.

“Our intent is to show that the wind farm we are proposing meets all the requirements of Packer Township and that we comply with the zoning ordinance,” said Miller.

This week, the Broad Mountain Power LLC officially opened an office in Weatherly to help answer people’s questions.

“We want to have a local presence, so we are here to invite people in and answer questions if they have any questions about the wind farm development,” said Miller.

The next zoning hearing will be on April 30.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2019/04/20/zoning-hearing-held-on-wind-farm-project-in-packer-township/