Wind Farms

An Associated Press analysis of county tax data across three states — Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska — found wind companies rank among the biggest taxpayers in many rural communities

DeKalb County government officials are seeking additional guidance and inviting the public to weigh in on a new state law which requires counties to make uniform existing regulations on solar and wind farm developments.

Two proposed 35-acre solar farms in Clinton Township in southern DeKalb County are one step closer to approval.

The wind farm would generate around $10.85 million in property taxes across the next 25 years.

The goal of the $140 million project is to produce more energy, reduce operational costs, and create less noise at lower wind speeds.

Putnam County residents looking for a final decision on the ongoing discussion surrounding wind farms in the county, will have to continue to wait as the PC Board unanimously voted to extend the current moratorium on wind turbines until Sept. 30, 2022.

Aiming to increase diversity in wind and solar jobs, a proposed measure in the Illinois General Assembly would require more transparent reporting on the level of participation of minority-owned businesses in clean energy jobs.

A year ago, the board voted down a moratorium on solar projects and instead created the renewable energy committee as well as made changes to the solar ordinance to address concerns from neighbors of projects including setbacks and visual buffers.

The proposed $300 million project would span more than 15,000 acres.

The Bison Meadows Wind project would likely have fewer than 50 turbines across a large footprint, and the company has secured about 7,000 acres so far in leases and commitments.

The Lee County Board recently approved a special-use permit for the project, which includes replacing 58 turbines with upgraded models in Lee County near Ohio and is expected to total around $270 million.

After at least nine months of discussion and deliberation, the DeKalb County Board finally passed a final wind ordinance during its meeting Wednesday at the DeKalb County Farm Bureau

A DeKalb County hearing officer is not recommending any changes to setback requirements in the county’s draft wind energy ordinance, but thinks other regulations should be less restrictive.

The DeKalb County Board unanimously approved a moratorium Wednesday on developing wind and solar farms for 18 months or until a sustainable energy ordinance is passed

The DeKalb County Planning and Zoning Committee agreed Wednesday to hold a second public hearing on whether to build two 200-foot-tall wind testing towers after the first hearing was criticized

Teresa Phillips, who lives the near sites where the towers are proposed, said that DeKalb County officials should deny the permits before the talks on wind testing snowball into the construction of hundreds of wind turbines.

A Kane County judge on Thursday gave residents living among the wind farm operated by NextEra Energy Resources the OK to take a lawsuit seeking the turbines’ removal to trial.

NextEra Energy Resources plans to “officially commission” its 145-tower wind farm by the end of this week, although the turbines in the southern part of the county have been harnessing wind and turning it into electricity for a few weeks.