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Are we better of with or without more windmills?

The Tehachapi News has a growing number of fans on Facebook and the forum provides an opportunity for our readers to share their opinions with us. Recently we asked: “would Tehachapi be better off with or without more wind development?”

Environmental review, land use plan amendment proposed for Alta East Wind Project in Mojave:Scoping’ meeting in Mojave Aug. 4

The Bureau of Land Management last week announced the beginning of an environmental review of the proposed wind energy project on 3,200 acres near Mojave that a spokesman said could produce 300 megawatts of electricity.

Friends of Sand Canyon oppose wind project

Ed Gordon, Contributing Writer

Approximately 75 community members attended a meeting of  The Friends of Sand Canyon held at Dr. Beverly Billingsley’s barn on July 9 to get an update on the status of possible windmill construction in their area.

Planning down on the ranch

Deborah Hand, Columnist

The news that the Pahnamid Wind Energy project has been withdrawn from the County Planning Office is good news to most of us up here on the mountain. After spending several million dollars between the City of Tehachapi’s General Plan, the County’s Specific Plan, and the Kern Council of Government’s “Blueprint,” it would be foolish to start making zoning changes at the first opportunity. These plans all had considerable public input, and were several years in the making.

Terra Gen pulls the plug on Pahnamid project

Carin Enovijas, News Editor

Terra-Gen Power announced last week that it is withdrawing its rezoning application for the controversial 7,106-acre Pahnamid Wind Energy project in the Tehachapi Mountains.

Now & Then -- Things that get in the wind

Claudia Elliott, Managing Editor

You may have watched the game show Jeopardy, where a series of answers are listed and the contestants have to come up with the correct question to win.

City Council formally opposes wind parks

Ed Gordon Contributing Writer

At the June 6 regular meeting, the Tehachapi City Council voted 4-0, with council member Linda Vernon absent, to send a letter to the Kern County Planning Commission formally opposing wind parks in the greater Tehachapi region.

The approved draft letter states that the city council “would like to go on record that we are in opposition to these relatively new wind park proposals that are encroaching far too close to established residential communities such as Sand Canyon, Mountain Meadows, Old West Ranch and the City of Tehachapi.”

Pahnamid turbine meeting: residents tell county they don’t want project

Tina Forde, Staff Writer

For the speakers at the May 2 Pahnamid scoping meeting, the issue boiled down to zoning.

The developer wants the county to overlay WE (Wind Energy) zoning on 7,106 acres, a desgination that would allow the construction of industrial wind turbines.

Wind proposal sparks concern

Tina Forde, Staff Writer

A proposed 7,106-acre wind energy project on the north-facing mountains of Tehachapi Valley, south of the city, would extend wind turbines from the east to beyond Tehachapi Mountain Park, according to the county planning document that has set the permit process in motion.

The Kern County Planning and Community Development Department issued a Notice of Preparation (NOP) of a Draft Environmental Impact Report dated April 6, 2011, for the project, called Pahnamid.

Budget, prisons, windmills update

Zack Scrivner, Second District Supervisor

Kern County is facing a budget deficit for the upcoming 2011-2012 fiscal year that could easily be within the $25 million to $30 million range. Over the next six months, the board will work with departments to close this gap. The Board of Supervisors held our first round of budget hearings on April 5, scrutinizing general fund expenditures for each county department.

“Quality of life” departments, such as Parks and Recreation, Libraries, and Code Compliance, have already experienced deep cuts over the last few budget years. As a result, 67 percent of the county’s general fund budget is dedicated to Sheriff, Fire, Probation, District Attorney and other criminal justice departments. The board must now look to these public safety departments to find ways to reduce expenditures in the upcoming fiscal year.