December 5, 2020
Michigan

Huron Township hosting public hearing for new wind turbines

Developer looking to build 21 new turbines | By Robert Creenan | Huron Daily Tribune | Friday, December 4, 2020 | www.michigansthumb.com

HURON TOWNSHIP – The Huron Township Planning Commission will be holding a special meeting and public hearing regarding an application for more wind turbines in the township.

The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. on Dec. 10 over the Zoom video conferencing application.

The planning commission will consider whether to grant a special approval use permit for Liberty Power’s proposal for up to 21 new wind turbines, access roads, and underground electrical collection able network and other ancillary facilities.

The public may participate in the meeting in Zoom to provide public comment.

For residents who want to join the meeting by telephone, call 646-558-8656 prior to the meeting then follow the instructions when prompted.

In their application for these new wind turbines, Liberty Energy says the 21 new turbines will produce 104 megawatts of power, enough to supply 100,000 homes with clean energy. It will include a central project substation in Bloomfield Township, private access roads to the turbines, and an underground medial voltage cable network to collect the energy produced by the turbines and deliver it to the substation.

The new wind farm includes more than 8,500 acres of participating agricultural zoning district land, with the participation of more than 80 landowners. The turbines will occupy less than 10 acres of Huron Township land and be serviced by about four miles of private access roads.

The application says that this project would require 200 construction workers and the construction period would last between 12 and 18 months.

The turbines would have a hub height ranging from 263 feet to 390 feet, with the turbine blades giving them a height ranging from 450 feet to 656 feet.

Related Story: Huron Township receives applications for future turbines

Liberty Power, a subsidiary of Algonquin Power, currently operates the Deerfield Wind Farm, with this new development being named Deerfield Wind Energy II. It currently has 72 turbines stretching across Huron, Lincoln, Dwight, and Bloomfield townships, with 25 of those turbines in Huron Township.

Huron Township is a self-zoned township, meaning that any building activity or changes to land use require conformity to the township zoning ordinance and approval by a zoning inspector.

More information about the special meeting and Liberty Energy’s application materials can be found at https://spicerplanning.wordpress.com.


URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2020/12/05/huron-township-hosting-public-hearing-for-new-wind-turbines/