Crystal Lake makes room for workers, wind farm

100-turbine project underway, 150 workers expected by spring

CRYSTAL LAKE - Trucks and big equipment have been moving in and out of Crystal Lake for weeks turning this quiet, little community into a regular beehive of activity as workers from FPL Energy and Blattner Construction make preparations for a proposed 100-turbine wind farm.

“We have 53 projects currently operating in the United States,” said Steve Stengel, director of corporate communications for FPL Energy, which is an affiliate of Juno Beach, Fla.-based Florida Power & Light Co.

“There is a general excitement in the community when these projects come to town,” Stengel said, and he knows how stories and facts can get stretched with each retelling so he was more than happy to share the facts and the status of the operation.

There are actually two different projects going on around Crystal Lake and other parts of Hancock County. One is the Crystal Lake wind project and the second is the transmission lines needed to connect the wind power to the grid Stengel said.

Wind Farm

“On the wind project we have all the approvals (easements from the county and private landowners) and have started preliminary site work, such as building roads and moving dirt. A lot of work goes in before erecting the turbines,” Stengel explained.

The plan calls for a wind farm that will generate 150 mega watts of energy. To achieve that goal 100 turbines, each generating 1.5 megawatts of power, will be erected in several different locations in Hancock County. All the turbines will be connected underground through a grid system with power lines running from turbine to turbine.

Blattner Construction, FPL Energy's main EPC (Engineering Procurement and Construction) contractor for their jobs, workers and almost a dozen local companies have completed most of the roads as well as a number of the turbine foundations on the north side of the project.

Underground power cables are currently being trenched radiating out from the substation location toward the turbine sites. As with all Midwest jobs, each phase of operation is weather-dependent. 
 
Stengel said the 100 turbines will be located over an area of approximately 24 square miles, all located in Hancock County. While he could not give the exact locations of each wind station for security purposes he did say, “In general, the project is bounded by 260th St. on the south, 330th St. on the north, Deer Avenue on the west and just east of James Ave. on the east.”

Stengel said the land where the turbines will be located is leased from the landowners, with the exception of the 10 acres purchased for the area where the substation and Operations and Maintenance Building will be located at the intersection of Hill Ave and 310th St.

“We have started foundation work on the structures for those facilities at this time,” Stengel said.

“On any given day somewhere between 90 to 100 workers could be on site. About one-third of these people have been hired locally,” Stengel said. Although more workers will arrive next spring when the operation gets into full swing, he said maximum manning for the site would be about 150 total.

On a lighter side and to dispel any rumors, Stengel said each Blattner or FPL crew member is responsible for finding their own housing around the area and there are absolutely no plans to purchase a motel and have workers bused in.

According to Stengel the local, or Iowa-based, companies FPL has contracted with so far include Yohnco Concrete in Garner, American Concrete Products in Britt, BMC Aggregates in Fertile for crushed rock and trucking, K&H Co-Op in Wesley for fuel, Quaker Security from Eldora, Gullickson Electric in Forest City for electrical work in the trailer complex, Chosen Valley Testing for soil and concrete testing, Alliant, Prairie Energy and WCTA for utility work throughout the site, and J.B. Holland from Decorah for some road subgrade work.

A number of other local companies are being used for general construction supplies and services, such as potolets, water and lumber.

Over the winter some operation will obviously cease, however, “We plan on continuing with the construction of the substation, the Operations and Maintenance Building and the underground power cable installation,” Stengel said. “Turbine foundation construction will probably stop before the holiday's and begin again after the spring thaw.”

Transmission lines

FPL is still waiting for approval from the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) for the transmission lines.

The company plans to install transmission lines to bring power from the Crystal Lake wind farm to the Lime Creek Power Station, which is located south of Manly.

“We have easement agreements with all the land owners needed for the transmission lines. Three or four have expressed concerns, but these are not individuals that the transmission lines cross their property,” Stengel said. “We are having ongoing discussions with them to alleviate the concerns they do have. The hope is still to get approval from IUB in time to build the wind farm and transmission line in 2008.”

Impact on the community

“These projects have a tremendous economic value to nearby towns,” Stengel said. The increased traffic alone has been a boon for local retailers.

“Business has picked up tremendously. Trucks stop here all day long,” said Sheri Moore at Sheri's Southside Store in Crystal Lake.

She said she routinely does a customer count each day and she's been comparing notes. “My customer count is up 50 a day. That's quite a bit for Crystal Lake,” she said

The progress around Crystal Lake - with getting the lake dredged and then this - this has helped everybody around here,” Moore said.

Bobbie Garrison, owner and operator of the local cafe, The Cookie Jar, agrees whole-heartedly.

“We've been so busy we had to hire help, which is a big change because this is usually my slow time of year,” Garrison said.

“It's been a God-send for us. They're really nice people,” she said. “I talked to other employees and they like working for (the project). I like working for them, too.” In addition to her hours at the restaurant she also works as a security guard for the project.

She said their café normal hours were 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. then 4:30 to 9 p.m. with very little evening business. Now the café is filled each day with hungry crew workers and they make dozens of noontime lunch deliveries. “They pretty much make the menu. I'll make whatever they want me to make,” Garrison said with a grin.

This week they also added pizzas to their menu again to accommodate the new growth in business and starting in February they will be extending their hours from 9 a.m. straight through to 9 p.m.

Other benefits

Some editorials have expressed concern and displeasure over out-of-state companies building these wind farms to create more energy for themselves while local communities don't benefit at all.

Stengel said, “It is not possible to generate in Iowa and ship back to Florida. Iowa benefits from an abundant renewable energy.”

Iowa is the third largest state in the nation in terms of energy production. Stengel used the analogy of a lake when explaining energy usage.

“An electron is an electron is an electron,” he said. It doesn't matter what company generates it. “Think of a big lake. When electrons are generated they are dumped into the lake and all other energy providers are doing the same thing. When you turn on the lights, you are drawing energy from that lake. Crystal Lake will benefit from wind power being there.”

In terms of state and local economy, Cindy Shack, Hancock County Economic Development Director, said the wind farm would provide energy for 44,000 homes and will generate over $60 million in state and county revenue from total taxation over 25 years. And the total annual lease payment to landowners who have a turbine on their property is approximately $600,000 per year.