Henry County Council OKs 2nd wind farm tax abatement

While the hearing was specifically about the Flat Rock project, dozens of people spoke out about wind farms in general. Many of the turbine protesters live in northern Henry County townships and vehemently opposed efforts of an unrelated wind project around Sulphur Springs.

New Castle-Henry County Economic Development Corp. President and CEO Corey Murphy submitted a resolution for final reading and approval to the council Wednesday that would designate a new economic revitalization area and defer property taxes for Flat Rock Wind. The council heard the first reading of the resolution in March.

Flat Rock Wind, LLC, has been talking with property owners in Franklin and Dudley townships for about six years. The company was acquired by Apex Clean Energy, and the first of several public informational hearings started in December, 2014. Around that time, the Henry County Commissioners approved several agreements, including a tax abatement, with another energy company that had interests in other south Henry townships.

Murphy presented a historical timeline of those projects to the council Wednesday. Councilman Steve Dugger pointed out that Henry County elected officials have been working on the project and have been reaching out for community input on Flat Rock specifically for three years.

“Although not 100 percent, the public comment and participation throughout this process has been positive,” Murphy said. “Based on this positive process and the county’s actions to date, Apex – the sponsoring company for the Flat Rock wind project – has invested over $5 million in the last year to develop this project.

“Turning down this abatement request is damaging to this specific project. It is also damaging to our county’s reputation,” Murphy added.

Flat Rock project manager Brenna Gunderson told the council that the tax abatement would allow the company to continue to stay competitive as they shop for energy buyers.

Although some comments against the abatement came from Straughn and Dunreith area residents, the majority of people who spoke out against the tax abatement Wednesday were from Fall Creek, Harrison, and Jefferson townships. A grassroots opposition has grown up over the past month against the company Calpine and their proposed wind farm in that area.

Earlier this month, Calpine indefinitely withdrew a request to install equipment outside of Mt. Summit that would measure weather conditions. The company has made no other permit or land usage requests with the county.

Rick Conyers of Harrison Township asked about a tax analysis for the Flat Rock wind project. Jason Semler of the accounting firm Umbaugh and Associates shared the data showing how the wind farms may affect local tax rates. Semler had originally presented the information during a community meeting in Lewisville in March.

Vernon Cherrett, from the Cadiz area, objected to the building codes that the county has in place outlining how far turbines have to be from neighboring properties. Cherrett said he has been in the construction business for 20 years and has always taken “life safety” into consideration. He argued that the current county setback requirements are not enough to protect residents if a blade breaks off a turbine.

Cherrett referenced the 2011 article ‘A method for defining wind turbine setback standards’ as an alternative for determining how far away turbines should be from populated areas.

The protesters shared concerns about potential health effects, safety worries and property values with the council. One resident brought an attorney to the meeting who questioned the legality of the proposed economic revitalization area.

Murphy asked the council to differentiate between the two wind farm projects, saying “A vote for Flat Rock is not a vote for Calpine.”

Henry Count Commissioner Ed Yanos, who is also a southern Henry County farmer, also asked the council to separate the two issues. Yanos acknowledged that he could personally benefit from the Flat Rock wind farm and has previously submitted an official conflict of interest notice.

“Calpine obviously isn’t wanted by a lot of people,” Yanos said. “We have not had the kind of opposition to the former-Nordex-now-Apex field in the south.”

Dave Perry, of Harrison Township, raised concerns about landowner liability if they get into business with Apex through the Flat Rock project. Perry presented lien documents from an Apex project in Illinois that named the land lease owners as defendants. Perry suggested that rather than request an abatement, Flat Rock offer some plan to put more tax revenue into the local funds.

Straughn property owner Joel Margera spoke in favor of the Flat Rock tax abatement so that the project could move forward. Margera told the council that several farming families in the area had drafted the original contracts with Nordex that then went to Apex. The contracts cover road usage agreements, turbine decommissioning and include language that special additions be added to protect service roads.

Several New Castle High School students also happened to be at the meeting as part of a school assignment. Seniors Nicholas Taylor and Jordan May both spoke in favor of the Flat Rock project as a way to help promote clean energy and counteract climate change.

Councilman Dugger made the official motion to approve the resolution, with Robin Fleming seconding. Before the vote, Mike Thalls thanked everyone who spoke on the subject. Thalls reminded people that the issue is not about North versus South, rather it is about what the people living in the south part of the county have said they want to do with their land.

“This is not a civil war,” Thalls said. “My opinion is that most people are for it.”

The final vote was 5-1, with Harold Griffin voting against. Griffin said he made his decision based on the public calls and personal investigations that he has made over the past three years.