Council here is a long way from completing its dealings with wind turbines.
Councillor Neil Driscoll made that clear on March 13 when he presented a notice of motion directing staff to “request that the chief building official provide immediate notice to the township, through [the chief administrative officer and clerk Patty Sinnamon], of any applications for building permits submitted by NextEra so that the township can, at that time, review the application in the context of other required approvals for the wind turbine project.”
A number of people who are opposed to the NextEra Energy application were in the audience that evening. One of them asked that the group’s spokesman John Krul be permitted as a delegation at the council meeting.
Council cannot debate and does not require a seconder for a notice of motion. It is strictly advance warning that the issue will be discussed.
But people in the audience suggested their lawyer has stated there are legal grounds for not issuing building permits.
But Sinnamon explained that even council has no say over the issuing of building permits. She explained municipal law states council “does not have the authority to direct its CBO to authorize or withhold a building permit.”
She explained that regulation is “unlike the Planning Act. Our solicitor suggests I inform council if there is a permit and we can look at applicable law.”
The NextEra application for ten wind turbines near Arthur is under appeal to the environmental appeal tribunal and also under judicial appeal by Krul’s group.
Council has decided it will forego the environmental tribunal and has yet to decide if it will appeal to the courts to halt the approval of the NextEra project under the Green Energy Act.
Sinnamon told the group, “At this point, it hasn’t been established that [the approval] doesn’t meet applicable law.”
The next council meeting is scheduled for March 27.
