Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Vacancy on Commission remains
DAVENPORT — The Lincoln County Commissioners denied a request from Planner Courtney Thompson to appoint a Mondovi-area landowner who has leased land to wind turbine companies to the County Planning Commission at a regular meeting Monday, May 6.
Neither Rob Coffman nor Jo Gilchrist seconded a motion from Commissioner Scott Hutsell to appoint John Zeimantz, who has leased Mondovi-area land to Portland-based Triple Oak Power, to the Commission.
Thompson told the Commissioners Zeimantz approached her about joining the Commission, which currently has four members and could hold up to seven.
“I’m a hard no on this,” Coffman said while admitting his personal beef with Zeimantz.
Coffman lamented Zeimantz publicly questioning his findings of turbine-related property tax impacts at a public Planning Commission meeting in March, claiming Zeimantz didn’t personally approach him before offering public criticism.
Gilchrist also said she “wasn’t in agreement” with the appointment. Both Coffman and Gilchrist have noted their personal opposition to wind turbine development, while maintaining the Commissioners’ stance that personal property rights are of utmost importance if activity is legal.
Zeimantz declined to comment on the appointment rejection this week, while Planning Commission chair Sue Lani Madsen said she wasn’t approached by Zeimantz about joining the Commission and didn’t offer the Commissioners support or opposition to his potential appointment.
Thompson, for her part, said Planning Commission members were going to be biased toward or against wind turbine development when questioned by the Commissioners about a landowner being on the Commission.
“No matter who you put on there, it’s going to be controversial,” Coffman said. “At the end of the day, it’s not going to matter who wants it and who doesn’t.”
Point being, Coffman said, that higher state and federal powers who want to see wind turbine development will allow it to happen here without county control, a system he has publicly railed against several times during recent turbine controversy.
Coffman also said he recently met with Assessor J Scott Liebing and Tenaska reps. to further discuss property taxes and wind turbines, while reiterating a stance he’s taken before: legislative action is required to ease depreciation shifts from turbines toward other taxpayers in that taxing district.
The still-4-person Planning Commission meets at 10 a.m. in the Public Works Building off State Highway 25 Monday, May 13.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
Reader Comments(0)