The Woodford County Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously approved a petition by Navitas Energy to build a wind farm east of Minonk. The wind farm to be named Minonk Wind Farm LLC will have 100 turbines and will locate 75% of the turbines in Woodford County and 25% in Livingston County. The wind farm is expected to generate enough electricity for 60,000 homes.
Wind engineers testified that the turbines automatically stop when its computer senses an imbalance on the propeller blades such as ice accumulation. A real estate appraiser testified that his research indicated that property located near wind farms do not decline in value.
The revised petition states that the turbines will be 475 feet tall from the base to the upper tip of the propeller and must be located at least 750 feet away from the nearest residential building. The windfarm is expected to annually generate over $1.5 million of property taxes for Woodford County and over $1 million for the Fieldcrest school district.
The zoning board's recommendation will be forwarded to the Woodford County Board for approval. If approved, construction will start on the wind farm in the summer of 2010 and expected to be completed by the fall of 2011.