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Commenter urges Wapello County to embrace wind projects; zoning work session set for April 14
Summary
A commenter during public remarks urged county officials to consider wind-turbine development, citing an economic-impact study. Supervisors and staff said a joint zoning work session with the board of supervisors is scheduled for April 14 at 5:30 p.m. and that a survey will precede that meeting.
During public comment, a man who identified himself as Jared urged county officials to consider wind-turbine development as an economic option, citing an economic-impact study for a separate project and urging the county to move quickly to keep wind projects viable.
"Based on the economic impact study that we did for the Black Maple project, it's going to bring in over $85,000,000," Jared said of a 400-megawatt project discussed in his remarks. He added that a proposed 200-megawatt project could produce roughly half that lifetime economic impact and that revenue over a typical 30-year project life could translate into "between a million [and] 2 million dollars a year" for the county, as he phrased it. Those figures were presented by Jared as estimates from his firm's study and were not independently verified during the meeting.
County staff and supervisors told meeting attendees that the zoning commission plans a joint work session with the board of supervisors on April 14 at 5:30 p.m. The staff said the commission will send a survey to supervisors and the board of supervisors in advance to gauge priorities to guide the work session; the meeting will be open to the public. A speaker on the zoning commission noted the commission generally meets the second Monday of the month when there are agenda items and said the group is monitoring a state-level House/Senate file that could affect county rules.
The public comment and the scheduled work session were distinct from the board's formal votes on budget and other agenda items earlier in the meeting. Supervisors did not take formal action on the wind project during this session; they scheduled the April 14 work session for discussion of zoning guidance.
Speakers at the meeting cautioned that state action could dictate county processes; one participant said it was "very unlikely" that the state measure would pass this year. The work session and the survey will be the next steps noted for local discussion.
