Referendum indicates 7 of 10 residents don't want wind farms; Apex says results are "meaningless"

MONTICELLO – More than 70% of Piatt County voters said “no” to a question about permitting wind farms in the county in last week’s consolidated election, but officials with Apex Energy say the results are “meaningless.”

“Shall the Piatt County Board permit the zoning and permitting necessary to construct a commercial windfarm with the boundaries of Piatt County” was the question proposed to voters. Of the 2,121 votes cast, 1,498 (70.63%) voted “No” and 623 (29.37%) voted “Yes.”

The question was for advisory purposes only and is not binding.

Last month, the county board voted down a special use permit application from Apex Energy for the proposed Goose Creek Wind Farm in northern Piatt County. Apex has the right to re-submit the application, but the county has placed a moratorium on wind farm special use permit applications until Sept. 1.

“We are unconcerned with the results of the wind referendum on Tuesday,” said Apex Public Engagement Manager Ray Hoover. “The County Board has explicitly stated that they know the referendum is meaningless, as this vote has no bearing on whether wind projects are built in Piatt County. It is a bad indicator of support when such a small percentage of voters care enough to come to the polls – less than 20% of voters participated. Compare that to the last property tax question posed to Piatt County voters, which saw nearly four times the turnout, and it’s clear what’s important to most residents – taxes, jobs, and the economy.”

Additionally, new state legislation will take away much of the power of county boards to make the decision on their own.

County board members have considered non-binding referendums on both wind and solar farm projects for more than five years. In August 2018, then State’s Attorney Dana Rhoades told the board that no matter the outcome of the vote, the county could not completely outlaw solar panels and wind turbines. Each application has to be taken individually. Rhoades is now a Piatt County judge.

Governor J.B. Pritzker signed HB 4412, which passed in a lame-duck session of the outgoing legislature and bars counties from banning the projects.

The Illinois Farm Bureau and 70 counties oppose the legislation, which creates a commission that will oversee and approve wind farms statewide except for Chicago.

The new law prevents any local ordinance from being more restrictive than the new state standards.

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Much is unknown about the new legislation including when or how the new commission will be formed.

Other races

There were only a handful of contested races in Piatt County in the consolidated election.

In Monticello, Andrea Lively was the only person on the ballot for the Ward 1 Alderman seat. Incumbent Ashley Muse did not seek re-election.

In Ward 2, because of the redistricting of the wards, Ryan Woodham will be representing Ward 3. John Diniz beat Erik Broadrick 109-72 for the Ward 2 seat.

Woodham won the seat for Ward 3. Incumbent Ian Clark did not run for re-election.

In Ward 4, Incumbent Tom Reed retained his seat, beating challenger Tom Pearcy 81-35.

In Mansfield, Deena Carico, April Manning, Todd Jones and Donald Deffenbaugh earned seats as trustees, beating out Lucas Gilbert.

In Bement, Bob Stevens, Tammy Allison and Judith Good, earned seats over Gary Brennan.

Of the 11,911 registered voters in Piatt County, 2,155 voted, for an 18.09% turnout.