Petition on wind facility is dismissed

A petition seeking to block the construction of a proposed wind farm has been dismissed.

Randolph County Superior Court Judge Peter Haviza signed an order Wednesday dismissing the petition for judicial review and declaratory judgment filed in July by opponents of Bitter Ridge Wind Farm.

Steve Snyder, the attorney who had filed the petition on behalf of 11 Jay County residents, had filed the stipulation for dismissal with prejudice Tuesday. 

Because the petition was dismissed with prejudice, the issue can’t be re-litigated.

Haviza was assigned to oversee proceedings in the Jay Circuit Court case after Judge Brian Hutchison recused himself.

The petition, filed by Snyder on behalf of Jeff and Sheila Birsfield, Kurt Boeckman, Deb and Steve Fouch, Jeri and Michael Garringer, Brandon Miller, Fonda Miller and Randy Miller and Jeff and Rachel Price, sought to have the court reverse Jay County Plan Commission’s June 21 decision to allow Scout Clean Energy to move forward with the proposed wind farm. It argued that the decision should be overturned because the project does not meet the requirements of the county’s zoning ordinance, citing a section that limits structures in areas zoned agricultural residential to 100 feet. (The project’s turbines would be about 300 feet tall, with the blades at 500 feet fully extended.)

Snyder and wind farm opponents had made the same argument during plan commission’s public hearing on the facility. At that time, county attorney Bill Hinkle and Jay/Portland Building and Planning director John Hemmelgarn noted that the ordinance allows for exceptions to the height requirements, including for wind energy projects.

Plan commission unanimously approved the project to move forward, with the stipulation that construction begin no later than July 1, 2020, and be complete no later than Dec. 31, 2020.

The proposed wind farm has been the subject of a months-long debate that has seen crowds of more than 100 at Jay County Commissioners, Jay County Council and plan commission meetings. The most recent of those was Sept. 12, when county council approved Scout’s request for a tax abatement on the project.

Bitter Ridge Wind Farm calls for 52 wind turbines in Jefferson and Richland Townships, a construction project of about $135 million.