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Federal bureaucracy slows Kenston wind turbine
(by Sue Hoffman - June 16, 2010)
Federal bureaucracy slows Kenston wind turbine
By SUE HOFFMAN
At a special meeting last week, the Kenston School Board approved a state energy-plan-grant agreement for $705,500 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 funds for the wind turbine planned on the high school campus.
The amount includes the original $630,500 promised by government officials to the district last fall, plus $75,000 for required environmental studies, school officials said Monday.
The board also approved a contract with the Renaissance Group, of Kirtland, the construction manager, to provide an environmental assessment required for the funding. The $24,875 cost of the assessment will be covered by the grant.
School Superintendent Robert A. Lee said Monday that he and other renewable-energy recipients were surprised to learn that additional environmental studies are required.
Last fall, Kenston officials attended a press conference at Lincoln Electric Co. in Cleveland, where Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland announced the district's award of $630,500 in stimulus dollars for installing a wind turbine.
In addition to the governor, U.S. Reps. Betty Sutton, D-Akron, and Marcia Fudge, D-Shaker Heights, and officials from the Ohio Department of Development were on hand at the Nov. 30 press conference to congratulate Kenston officials and other Ohio recipients of more than $13 million in wind-energy awards.
However, winds of change have been buffeting the district and other Ohio stimulus fund recipients this spring in their efforts to secure the funding, Dr. Lee said. Since the press conference, "we've been calling and calling and calling," he said.
In a conference call at the end of April with officials from the U.S. Department of Energy and the Ohio Department of Development, the Ohio wind-energy award recipients were told that they had to perform extensive environmental studies to be approved for the awards, Dr. Lee said. They were told the studies would take about six months, he said.
The conference call took place a few days after Kenston's tower and blades had been delivered.
"We said, 'Mine's here. What do you mean?' We wondered, 'Where were you in November? What was the U.S. Department of Energy doing during the application process?'"
Dr. Lee said the fund recipients learned that the studies would cost about $50,000 to $75,000. He said the federal officials did not seem to be aware of the bidding process -- and the additional four to six weeks that process requires.
"It was like a bomb dropped on us," he said. "All of us called our congressmen. "We realized we're finalists, not recipients."
All of the congressional aides he called seemed to be shocked with the news, Dr. Lee said.
In another conference call a week later, U.S. energy officials had a "kinder and gentler" tone, Dr. Lee said, and they agreed to increase the grant by $75,000 to cover the cost of the environment studies. He said their attitude was, "We're going to make this work." Those promised the funds received "conditional approval" backdated to April 7, pending completion of the studies, he said.
Six studies are required. Dr. Lee said he thought he could handle the historic study about the impact of the wind turbine on historic buildings, defined as being 50 years old or older. He said he is working on the approval process with the Ohio Historical Society.
One of the requirements of the study is to consult with American Indian and Hawaiian tribes, Dr. Lee said. Fortunately, that requirement is an easy one, since there are no tribes, he said.
The net effect is that the U.S. Department of Energy is "slowing all of the wind-energy projects across the state of Ohio," Dr. Lee said.
However, Dr. Lee said the district will move ahead with bidding for the $1 million construction project and will be able to start construction once the district receives the nacelle that powers the wind turbine from Parker Hannifin Corp., of Mayfield Heights. The school board previously approved the reissuance of $500,000 in notes, which will serve as a bridge loan to pay for the project until the district receives its grants.
Other grants approved for the project include $300,000 from Cleveland State University and the State of Ohio and $50,000 from the Cleveland Foundation.
"We're hoping to break ground this summer," Dr. Lee said. Once he has firmer news about the stimulus funds, he said the district will finalize its plans whether to add a tower extension, which would provide more power.
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