Better Plan, Wisconsin

Informational meeting on wind ordinance set

Written by Sheboygan Press staff

Source: www.sheboyganpress.com

July 18 2012 

The Sherman Town Board will hold an informational meeting Tuesday to discuss the town’s proposed wind energy ordinance and related state wind siting rules in light of a proposed commercial wind farm there.

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Silver Creek Fire Hall, W6566 Highway 144. Town officials will provide an overview of the state’s wind energy regulations along with its own wind ordinance proposal.

Attendees can ask questions and offer public comment during the meeting. No formal board action will be taken on the local ordinance proposal.

The meeting comes as town leaders prepare to consider a proposal by Hubertus-based, EEW Services, LLC, to build a nine- to-12 megawatt wind farm on a 400-acre property in the town.

The developer has so far indicated that it intends to submit a formal application to begin construction next year on the Windy Acres Wind Farm.

Under the proposal, four wind turbines would be built on a stretch of land located east of state Highway 57, west of county Highway CC and north of county Highway A. The turbine blades would reach as high as 500 feet and connect to a substation in the Town of Holland.

The project requires the blessing of the Town of Sherman Board, though approval is ultimately in the hands of state regulators at the Wisconsin Public Service Commission, as state rules governing wind farm siting supersedes local ordinances.

The town is in the process of drafting a local wind ordinance though it essentially must mirror the state’s rules.