Wind farm in South Plymouth draws negative response from neighbors

PLYMOUTH - Plans for a wind farm on Head of the Bay Road are creating turbulence in South Plymouth with the landowner and neighbors at odds over the impact on their quality of life.

After nearly four hours of presentations and discussion, the Planning Board decided to continue Monday's discussion of the request for a special permit for the wind farm and wind energy facility until next Monday night.

While neighbors argued that the five 328-foot wind turbines cranberry grower Keith Mann wants to install on his property would adversely affect their property values and their health, Mann said he's planning for his family's future through diversification of his cranberry bog business with Future Generation Wind LLC.

"I want to keep this farm going for many generations into the future," he said. "I've seen in my life some serious turns in the cranberry industry, and we're heading into one right now."

Neighbors say Mann might improve his chances of preserving his family's farm, but at their expense. One of the wind turbines would be installed too close for Bournehurst Drive resident Cullen Gustafson's comfort.

"If this were your home, you, too, would be standing here in my shoes seeking help from the Planning Board," he said.

Gone would be the seclusion, privacy and tranquity he wanted his family, Gustafson said, and down would go his property's value. The closest tower would be approximately 1,000 feet away. He said he might be able to accept three or four wind turbines.

"All I have is my house on Bournehurst Drive to give to my family at the end of the line," he said. "I'd like to have that same opportunity that the Manns are looking for, but I don't think I will, and neither will my neighbors and neither will the people on Morning Mist Drive."

Emotions ran high at the meeting Monday night. Morning Mist Lane resident Kay Turgeon said she and her family know the Manns, but the impact of having a wind turbine within half a mile of a residence is too great a burden. She said it's like she's placing a bet and losing badly.

"I'm putting a lot of money on one number, and I think I'm losing," she said.

The wind farm project also had its supporters.

Head of the Bay Road resident Annette Herbst hails from Europe and said the negative scenarios opponents have suggested don't coincide with her experience with wind turbines.

"My whole plea to everybody is that we consider we need to do this for the future," she said. "We have to think of our children and of the future."

Planning Board member Paul McAlduff was cut off by Chairman Marc Garrett and at one point ackowledged he may not have made friends in South Plymouth. Even before the audience reacted negatively, he made the case that the deaths of coal miners and the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico are reasons for supporting wind energy as opposed to conventional energy sources.

"Any time someone proposes to put up a wind turbine, neighbors don't want it," he said. "You can be part of a better plan for the nation and the area or you can be against it. You're either a part of the problem, or you're a part of the solution."

Bournehurst Drive resident Tom Booth said he's against the project because their quiet rural neighborhood would be destroyed by the installation of noisy wind turbines than can affect sleeping habits and cause headaches, both literally and figuratively. He said it's the aerodynamic noise, or wind passing over the blades, that would cause the most disconcerting noise.

While Mann has a study that says allegations of adverse health impacts are unproven, Booth said that works both ways.

"They're not disproven, so that's why we're here," he said. "We want to voice our concerns about that."

Planning Board Vice Chairman Malcolm MacGregor argued that the wind energy project as proposed would have an agregious impact on neighbors, and he cannot support it, although he supports the concept of wind energy.

"I find it very difficult to vote for this because of the excessive impact," he said. "A few people are going to suffer severely, and I can't do that," he said.

Planning Board member Larry Rosenblum said he considers the Future Generation Wind project to be a landmark project as a test case for the wind energy bylaw the town approved in 2005 and amended in 2006. He voted to approve the bylaw but describes it as inadequate.

Wind energy would benefit many, Rosenblum said, but in this case it would be to the extreme detriment of a few and he cannot support the project.

Rosenblum also agreed with the residents who took issue with how a recent balloon test was conducted. Balloon tests are designed to give people an idea of how visible a wind turbine would be from different select locations.

Planning Board member Bill Wennerberg also said he could not support the project as proposed and suggested there could be a compromise. Chairman Marc Garrett said relocating at least one of the wind turbines or reducing the number should be considered.

Before the board had a chance to continue its discussions further or decide whether to vote, Mann's attorney, Bob Betters, asked for a continuance. Board members agreed.

The hearing was continued to 8:20 p.m. Monday, May 10. The special permit process requires approval by the Zoning Board of Appeals, with a recommendation from the Planning Board. A ZBA hearing has been scheduled for 7:45 p.m. Wednesday, May 19.