Letters show outside interest in Falmouth turbines

Town officials weighing options for inoperable structures.

FALMOUTH — Town officials have fielded a number of suggestions as to what to do with the two municipal wind turbines on Blacksmith Shop Road.

The turbines are under a court order never to again spin at the location, and the selectmen are in the process of exploring options for what to do with the structures.

Town Manager Julian Suso received a handful of wide-ranging ideas in response to his request for letters of interest in the turbines. Varying levels of interest have been expressed by nine different entities.

Responses ranged from hosting the turbines to purchasing them. There was also a single offer to purchase the base and leave it onsite for use in constructing a cell tower.

The letters are a first step in moving the massive pair beyond town borders.

The top option for the town is to find a landowner outside Falmouth willing to sell or lease their property so Falmouth can continue as the turbines’ owner.

By operating them in another location, the town hopes to mitigate some of its turbine-related expenses, including required payback of a $3.5 million loan from the state if Wind 2, the second of the two structures, does not produce energy. In addition to getting out of the loan, the option would also generate some revenue for the town.

The second option would be to dismantle and sell the turbines. A final option would be to repurpose them, Suso said.

Soliciting the letters of interest represented an informal effort to see whether there was an appetite elsewhere to host the turbines.

“The solicitation for letters of interest was to help gel out any other scenarios that might be taken into consideration before we issue the formal Request for Proposals,” Suso said. “We’re working with the consultant from Weston and Sampson, and we hope to issue the RFP in the coming 30 days.”

In his letter of interest, Pembroke businessman Donald Shute said he owns or controls two large properties in southeastern Massachusetts that could accommodate the wind turbines “and withstand their perception as a neighborhood nuisance.”

Shute asked to be on the mailing list when the request for proposals goes out.

Nebraska-based Bluestem Energy Solutions said it had read of the town’s desire to “repurpose/salvage” the turbines, and wished to express interest “to learn more about the project and propose creative solutions.” The company also asked to be put on the mailing list for formal requests for proposals.

Agilitas Energy, a renewable energy developer, financier and owner/operator based in Wakefield, proposed a partnership with the town. In its letter of interest, the company proposed dismantling the turbines and relocating them to another site. Agilitas would be responsible for negotiating the terms of the lease for the new location and would aid in negotiating a net metering agreement for the town.

The company then proposes to lease the former turbine site at the wastewater treatment plant and install its own solar array and energy storage system, which would operate on an existing interconnection agreement.

A California-based company expressed interest in finding a buyer for the two wind turbines. Empyreal Power said it had already made contact “with several potential buyers” during an energy conference in Houston, “but further discussions are on hold” until the town makes a decision about which option it will pursue.

The buyers would purchase the turbines and remove them from Falmouth, company principal John Banner said in his letter.

Closer to home, Industria Development Group in Buzzards Bay has also expressed interest in buying the turbines as well as repurposing them. No further details were contained in the letter, but John Scanlon, the company’s manager, agreed to talk further with Suso about the proposal.

Other respondents offered different services. Bay Crane, of Smithfield, Rhode Island, said it had “the largest fleet of cranes in the Northeast” along with trailers large enough to accommodate the giant turbine blades.

A regional manager from San Diego-based IMS Research sent a letter asking to be kept in the loop, since the company tracks requests for proposals.

Richard Pascuito, site acquisition manager for Centerline Communications, in West Bridgewater, said he represented a cell tower company in that town. He asked whether officials would consider selling the blades to some other buyer and allowing his company to convert the base into a cell tower on its current location.

“We could propose a purchase of the tower and lease of the ground space so the town gets monies up front and an annual income,” Pasciuto wrote.

Wind 1 and Wind 2, which went online in 2010 and 2012, respectively, were the subject of nine lawsuits by abutters during their operation. Neighbors complained about a long list of turbine-related health effects.

Wind 1 already had been prohibited from spinning in Falmouth in 2015. The state Appeals Court ruled the turbine needed a special permit to continue operating, but the special permit application was denied by the Zoning Board of Appeals.

The town appealed the Zoning Board decision. But in June 2017, Barnstable Superior Court Judge Cornelius Moriarty upheld the denial. He agreed that the two 1.65-megawatt turbines posed a nuisance and ordered that they never operate again at the Blacksmith Shop Road site.

The selectmen opted against appealing Moriarty’s decision, but continued to explore local options for Wind 2.

Public pressure from turbine opponents continued, prompting four out of five selectmen in January to vote never to let either of the turbines operate again within Falmouth’s borders.

In addition to the letters of interest, Suso said he has been having ongoing conversations with Joint Base Cape Cod and Vestas American Wind Technology in Oregon.