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Developer seeks tax abatement for Prairie Creek 2 wind project; council tables decision
Summary
Will Holbrook, developer of Prairie Creek 2, asked the council for a 10-year, 75% property tax abatement for a 100 MW wind project. Commissioners said they would not act while the wind ordinance and the economic development agreement remained unresolved and tabled the request pending more documentation and counsel.
Will Holbrook, the developer for Prairie Creek phases 1 and 2, told the Blackford County Council he is seeking a 10-year, 75% property tax abatement for Prairie Creek 2, a proposed 100-megawatt wind project he said would include about 23 turbines across roughly 10,200 acres and carry a 30-year project life. Holbrook told the council the project structure mirrors the first phase and that projected new assessed value could be about $35,000,000, with roughly $7,800,000 in economic development agreement (EDA) payments to the county if the project becomes operational.
"Prairie Creek 2 is the second phase of that. It's a 100 megawatt wind project, which really equates to about 23 turbines," Holbrook said, adding that the company has developed about 35 operational wind projects and employs roughly 2,000 workers nationally. He described projected construction jobs of about 50 and a small number of ongoing full-time positions for the phase.
Council members pressed Holbrook on outstanding prerequisites. One commissioner said the county's proposed wind ordinance changes have not been finalized and another noted the EDA had not been fully negotiated. The chair raised a procedural concern about voting on a request that is contingent on actions that have not occurred. "My concern is voting on things that are contingent upon things that haven't even happened yet," the chair said.
After discussion, the council voted to table the abatement request without prejudice and asked that the applicant return to a future session with the negotiated EDA and with county counsel and the county's consultants available to answer questions. The chair also requested that representatives from the county's consultants and legal counsel attend the meeting when the item is reheard to facilitate answers about the agreement and ordinance applicability.
The council took no formal vote on the abatement itself at the meeting; the action was recorded as tabled pending completion of the EDA and clarity on ordinance applicability.
What happens next: The council will revisit Prairie Creek 2 at a future meeting after staff secures the EDA documentation and legal and consultant representatives can attend to answer questions.
