Developers balking at proposed Woodbury wind turbine

What's "green," 18 stories tall and trashes property values?

A wind turbine next to the new East Ridge High School in Woodbury - according to developers.

Plans for a wind turbine roughly 200 feet tall hit a snag last week when developers balked at the idea of building houses nearby. They said buyers of high-end homes would be spooked by the noise and visual distraction of huge whirling fan blades.

City officials are taking the threat seriously.

"The developers said, 'If you build it, we are walking,' " said city manager Clint Gridley, who would not identify the developers.

The dispute pits the quest for alternative energy against a city's desire to boost its tax base.

It is complicated by the fact that Woodbury would be the first city in Minnesota to allow a school to build a turbine in a mostly residential area - so no one knows how property values would be affected.

At a city workshop last week, developers and landowners reviewed their plans for a 300-acre parcel south of the new school. Gridley said developers want to build expensive homes comparable to those in Wedgewood, a ritzy development built around a private golf course northeast of the school.

But the housing market is suffering from a two-year slump, thanks to the home mortgage and foreclosure crisis. The prospect of an additional problem - the wind turbine - threatens to push developers out of the market.

Gridley said Woodbury already gave up about $80 million in tax valuation by allowing the high school to be built on a site at Bailey Road and Pioneer Drive. That has cut official enthusiasm for anything that might scuttle a major new development nearby.

Supporters of the turbine say the fears are exaggerated.

"If it were me, I would be more concerned about having the school next to me," said Rick Packer, who helps build wind farms for Westwood Professional Services, which provides consulting service to cities. He also is a member of the Twin Cities Builders Association.

Packer said there is little evidence that turbines would hurt property values. He said cities often put commercial or industrial land near homes.

"It does not hurt the value, although it may take a little more time to market," he said.

Fred Schmidt, Edina Realty district manager of St. Paul, agreed.

To a homebuyer, he said, "I don't think it's any different than living in the shadow of a water tower - except (wind turbines) are prettier."

Wind turbines are coming, Schmidt said. "We are going to have to get used to them."

Peter Rekow is the chairman of the city Sustainability Committee, which seeks to promote environmentally constructive practices in Woodbury. He said the turbine might hurt property values slightly. But he said water towers, malls and industries also can hurt - yet they are other necessary parts of a community.

"The severe strain on the economy is exaggerating everyone's fears," Rekow said. "It could be we are not going to develop anything until we get a more healthy economy."

After listening to the developers, Gridley is convinced that wind turbines are not as benign as, say, water towers.

"There's a difference. (Water towers) do not move," Gridley said. "You get right up close to (a turbine) and you say, 'Oh, my God. It is big and it is moving.' "

Gridley said the turbine would sit on a ridge and be visible for 2.5 miles.

The issue of wind turbines is part of an ongoing discussion among Woodbury officials as they hammer out a new ordinance and consider how it might be applied.

The issue pits the desire for alternative forms of energy against property values, Gridley said, and he admitted being torn between the two sides.

"I listened to one side and said, 'You are right,' " he said. "Then I listened to the other side and said, 'Well, you are right.' "