By Greg Chandler
Zeeland Record
With Zeeland Township’s legal bills starting to mount, the Township Board has added another $100,000 to its fund to fight the Silver Maple solar project.
The board on May 19 voted unanimously to commit $100,000 in an escrow fund to be used for its legal defense against the $330 million Silver Maple project that’s been proposed in Zeeland and Jamestown townships.
That brings to $200,000 the amount of funding the township has committed to fight the project, $75,000 of which came as a required payment from project developer RWE when it submitted its application for Silver Maple to the Michigan Public Service Commission.
Meanwhile, the township wrote a $30,000 check last week to the law firm Bloom Sluggett for legal expenses for the month of April. The township retained Bloom Sluggett last fall to assist officials in crafting a renewable energy ordinance and to represent the township in contesting RWE’s application before the MPSC.
“We want to be ahead of the actual expenditures,” Township Treasurer Melissa Veldheer said of the additional funding. “By law, we have to budget those expenditures in advance.”
Attorney David Eberle of Bloom Sluggett explained that the additional funding is to pay experts to testify on behalf of the township before the MPSC against Silver Maple. A pre-hearing on RWE’s application has been scheduled for next Thursday before an administrative law judge.
RWE has secured leases on 52 parcels, totaling 1,914 acres of farmland, representing 8.3 percent of Zeeland Township’s farmland and 4.5 percent of Jamestown Township’s farmland, for the Silver Maple project. The company plans to build the project on 1,127 acres of fenced-in land, according to its application document.
In a separate action May 19, the board approved a host community agreement between the township and Silver Maple, PV (the entity RWE has created for the project) that requires the company to pay the township $2,000 per megawatt of nameplate capacity. Silver Maple is proposed to produce 200 megawatts. The action followed a two-hour-long closed-door session where the board discussed legal matters tied to the project.
“Entering into that agreement in no way indicates support for the project. It is simply a recognition of the fact that they have to give the township money,” Eberle said.
That money may be used for “any proper public purpose,” including police, fire or infrastructure. If the township had declined to sign the agreement, RWE would have had to go to some other community-based organization to get approval of the agreement and that organization would get the money instead of the township, Eberle said.
“This in no way impacts the township’s ability to participate not only in the contested case proceedings, but any other judicial or legislative proceedings, or in any other way oppose the project,” Eberle said.
The RWE payment would not take place until within 30 days of the start of “any operation of the project,” according to the agreement document.
Zeeland Record
With Zeeland Township’s legal bills starting to mount, the Township Board has added another $100,000 to its fund to fight the Silver Maple solar project.
The board on May 19 voted unanimously to commit $100,000 in an escrow fund to be used for its legal defense against the $330 million Silver Maple project that’s been proposed in Zeeland and Jamestown townships.
That brings to $200,000 the amount of funding the township has committed to fight the project, $75,000 of which came as a required payment from project developer RWE when it submitted its application for Silver Maple to the Michigan Public Service Commission.
Meanwhile, the township wrote a $30,000 check last week to the law firm Bloom Sluggett for legal expenses for the month of April. The township retained Bloom Sluggett last fall to assist officials in crafting a renewable energy ordinance and to represent the township in contesting RWE’s application before the MPSC.
“We want to be ahead of the actual expenditures,” Township Treasurer Melissa Veldheer said of the additional funding. “By law, we have to budget those expenditures in advance.”
Attorney David Eberle of Bloom Sluggett explained that the additional funding is to pay experts to testify on behalf of the township before the MPSC against Silver Maple. A pre-hearing on RWE’s application has been scheduled for next Thursday before an administrative law judge.
RWE has secured leases on 52 parcels, totaling 1,914 acres of farmland, representing 8.3 percent of Zeeland Township’s farmland and 4.5 percent of Jamestown Township’s farmland, for the Silver Maple project. The company plans to build the project on 1,127 acres of fenced-in land, according to its application document.
In a separate action May 19, the board approved a host community agreement between the township and Silver Maple, PV (the entity RWE has created for the project) that requires the company to pay the township $2,000 per megawatt of nameplate capacity. Silver Maple is proposed to produce 200 megawatts. The action followed a two-hour-long closed-door session where the board discussed legal matters tied to the project.
“Entering into that agreement in no way indicates support for the project. It is simply a recognition of the fact that they have to give the township money,” Eberle said.
That money may be used for “any proper public purpose,” including police, fire or infrastructure. If the township had declined to sign the agreement, RWE would have had to go to some other community-based organization to get approval of the agreement and that organization would get the money instead of the township, Eberle said.
“This in no way impacts the township’s ability to participate not only in the contested case proceedings, but any other judicial or legislative proceedings, or in any other way oppose the project,” Eberle said.
The RWE payment would not take place until within 30 days of the start of “any operation of the project,” according to the agreement document.
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