March 11, 2020
Kansas

Tensions run high at Bourbon County Commission meeting

By Deja Bickham | KSNF/KODE | Mar 10, 2020 | www.fourstateshomepage.com

BOURBON COUNTY, Ks. – Tensions heightened at a Bourbon County Commission meeting that would decided the fate of a proposed wind farm project.

Jeff Fischer, Bourbon County Commissioner, said, “There was some discussion on renewable energy contract.”

Nearly 50 people gathered at the Bourbon County Courthouse wanting to know if County Commissioners would approve a contract with Apex Clean Energy for a wind farm project.

“We were presented some contacts to review over the past weeks and months.”

The contract referenced road-use agreements, pilot payments, and decommissioning and people on both sides of the issue waited for a decision.

Anne Dare, Bourbon County Resident, said, “We just don’t have enough information as to what the end will be and I know we don’t know what the end will be in a lot of situations but when this affects the whole of Bourbon County, this will affect the whole of Bourbon County, not just a few land owners.”

Kevin Hube with challenger construction says he’s all for the project.

Kevin Huber, President Of Challenger Construction, said, We’ve worked on wind farms throughout the Midwest, we’ve seen the economic impact it can bring to local communities. I know a lot of the rumors that are out there about how bad they are and I’ve seen that that’s not the case.”

Commissioners entered into executive session at least 3 times to further discuss the approving the contract, but no decision was made.

“We’re continuing in negotiations to ensure that we have a deal that works well for everyone in Bourbon County,” said Fischer.

If it moves forward, the Jayhawk Wind Farm Project would allow 50 wind turbines to be built between Crawford and Bourbon Counties.

Julianna Pianelli, Development Manager, Apex Clean Energy, said, “We would be bringing jobs to the community through the construction process, construction would start this fall of 2020.

Commissioners decided to table the discussion until Friday at 9 a.m.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2020/03/11/tensions-run-high-at-bourbon-county-commission-meeting/