MCLEAN COUNTY, Ill. (WAND) - Earlier in July, the McLean County board unanimously approved a fifth wind farm in the southeastern part of the county in District 2.
"It's good for the local farmers, so this is another form that farmers can earn extra income," McLean County Vice Chair Jim Soeldner said. "It will also be good for the few businesses that are in that area. I know there's a restaurant in Bellflower that I know will gain some revenue from this - gas stations, convenient stores."
The wind farm estimates to cost $350 million and features 64 turbines covering more than 14,000 acres of land in Bellflower and West Townships.
"The towers are 591 feet tall and the township of Bellflower and the township of west only have one incorporated village in that area, so it is mostly a rural area," Soeldner said. "It's on the Champaign - Piatt County border, so it'll be interesting to see if this entices other wind farms or other counties."
The project expects to bring in more than $100 million in tax and area school district revenue. It will also create close to 400 jobs.
"We're going to get a little extra $17,000 from the turbine just for the use permits," Soeldner said. "They have a bigger workforce when they're constructing the towers, but even after that it takes a fair number of people to keep it operational. So, there will be a couple dozen jobs full-time even after the project is completed."
Soeldner said ground will break on the project soon and that the new wind farm could take a year to build.
"I think they would like to get some towers started by the fall before the ground freezes that will all depend on the township road agreements," Soeldner said. "They have to have those completed before they get a permit to start building, so the quicker that gets started, the quicker that will happen."
Sapphire Sky is the company leading the project. They're based out of Chicago.
