Project moves ahead (06/02/06)

Members of the feisty crowd didn’t get the outcome for which they had hoped.

But officials hoping to build an ethanol plant southwest of Portland — and the local officials pushing for the project — came away happy. Despite concerns expressed by seven audience members and shouts of “No” when a board member made a motion, a request to re-zone land for an ethanol plant was recommended for approval by the Portland Planning Commission Thursday.

In a 5-2 vote, with one member abstaining, the planning Commission recommended the council approve the request made by Premier.

The request will go before the council for consideration Monday at 7 p.m.

Officials with Premier Ethanol LLC asked for about 180 acres located southwest of Portland to be changed to planned unit development-industrial from agricultural.

Before commission members voted, several people who live near where the ethanol plant is set to be built expressed their concerns.

The first person to speak was local attorney Lon Racster, who also lives near the proposed plant. His comments set the tone for the rest of the meeting.

“I suggest that this meeting is premature and unreasonable,” he said. “(Broin officials) can’t answer your questions. They don’t know what they’re doing.”

Racster recommended the commission table the matter. The commission hasn’t had enough time to review the preliminary plans, plus the company has not yet received an air quality permit or permission to discharge water into the Salamonie River from the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, he said.

“Are you going to sell us down the drain?,” he asked commission members. “Is this a done deal? What’s happening here?”

After Racster spoke, about 30 members of the audience applauded and cheered for him. They did the same each time they agreed with what an audience member said.

“We feel that we are on the right path,” said Mike Roth, director of engineering for Broin and Associates.

Sam Racster, Lon Racster’s son, who is a local stockbroker, also voiced opposition.

“I’m opposed to having an ethanol plant in a residential area. It’s stupid to put it in a nice residential area. We’re being steamrolled into something,” he said.

Bob Quadrozzi, executive director of Jay County Development Corporation, said, “I hope you know that after being here for 14 years I’ve never steamrolled anyone into anything.”

Sam Racster also said he and those who live near where the plant would be are concerned about water supply.

“It’s just not realistic,” he said of the project. “It’s all well and good if you don’t live there, but it’s an issue if you do.”

Many other audience members who spoke said they weren’t opposed to the project but it should be moved somewhere else. Other issues raised included concerns about smells, noise, water supply and traffic.

“We have odors in the agriculture community,” said Rob Frazee, who lives on county road 200 South near where the plant is expected to be built. “Do we want an additional odor?”

Among those speaking in favor of the project were Quadrozzi; officials with Broin and Associates and Broin Companies, which are working with Premier on the development of the plant; Bruce Hosier, mayor of Portland; and Milo Miller Jr., Jay County Commissioners president.

Commission members also asked several questions.

Bryant asked how the plant would dispose of used water.

Bob Berens, director of site development for Broin Companies, said there are two types of water of which the plant will need to dispose. One type is sewage, which could go to the city.

The other company officials would like to discharge into the Salamonie River after being treated with a reverse osmosis system. In order to take the water to the river, the company would need a permit from IDEM. The permit was applied for about a month ago and approval is expected to take two or three months, he said.

Advisory commission member John Knipp said in his estimation, there would be one semi truck transporting corn to the plant every 20 minutes.

Berens said there would be 75 to 80 trucks coming to the plant per day. Several audience members snickered after he made this comment.

The deliveries would only be made between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., although the plant would be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, he said.

Both commission and audience members said they were concerned about the odor the plant could create.

Lon Racster said he sent someone to an ethanol plant in Michigan to determine what kind of smell such plant creates.

“That smell was absolutely putrid,” he said.

Roth said he has been to the same plant and he did not smell the same odor.

“I’ve been there,” he said. “I don’t understand” how the smell could be putrid.

Hosier said he, Quadrozzi, Miller and District 33 State Rep. Bill Davis recently visited two ethanol plants in Iowa. He likened the smell produced by the plants to “the smell of sweet bread baking.”

Commission member Bob Loucks made the motion for the commission to recommend approval of the request to the city council.

The motion was made pending results of engineering studies being done on water supply issues, and whether the company receives necessary permits Indiana Department of Environmental Management for air and water discharge.

“I think there’s a lot of (unanswered) questions,” Newman said when voting. “In good conscience I have to say no.”

The commission has jurisdiction on the land because it falls within a two-mile area outside the city limits.

Those voting for the re-zoning were commission members Vicki Tague, Glen Bryant, Loucks, Tom Kennedy and Eldon Miller. Ken Walters also cast a dissenting vote. Dolphus Stephens said he did not feel comfortable voting on the matter so he abstained from voting. Judy Aker did not attend the meeting.

Before voting, Bryant said to the large audience, “You’ve got to trust your local government. It’s a real tough decision.”

“We’re the first step” in the approval process, Miller said before casting his vote. “Everything that comes up there’s people against it.”

Preliminary plans for the plant, which is set to be located on a parcel located along the southeast side of Ind. 67, near Meshberger Brothers Stone Corp., were reviewed by commission members during the meeting. The re-zoning request must be approved by the city council. Final plans will then have to be approved by the commission before construction can begin.

In other business, the commission also voted to recommend the council grant a map change request for two lots located near the corner of Seventh and Meridian streets in Portland.

Chris Jones, owner of Renegade Customs, 730 S. Meridian St., told the commission he would like the lots next to his business to be zoned highway service rather than neighborhood business, so he could sell vintage and hot rod cars.

Bill Milligan, Jay/Portland Building and Planning administrator, said all adjacent property owners were notified of the map change request and no objections were received. No one at Thursday’s meeting spoke against the request. The map change request is set to go before the city council on Monday.

Jones could have requested a special exception in a neighborhood business district. Milligan said he suggested Jones ask for highway service because he is trying to get the neighborhood, which currently has mixed zonings, zoned as highway service.[[In-content Ad]]