HomeMy WebLinkAbout19615 - RESOLUTIONS - 7/21/1999 RESOLUTION NO. 19615
OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM
SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA, RECOMMENDING DENIAL
OF ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT NO. CA-066-99-
27 - AN APPLICATION BY ENERGY UNLIMITED,
INC. FOR A PROPOSAL TO AMEND RIGHT-OF-WAY '
GRANT CACA-17192, WHICH WOULD ADD FORTY-
TWO (42) ACRES OF PUBLIC LANDS TO THE
EXISTING GRANT FOR THE PURPOSE OF
INSTALLING SIX (6) ONE-MEGAWATT, 300--FOOT
TALL NORDEX WIND TURBINE GENERATORS,
LOCATED ON PUBLIC LANDS IN
UNINCORPORATED RIVERSIDE COUNTY,
EASTERLY OF WHITEWATER CANYON ROAD AND
NORTHERLY OF INTERSTATE 10, SECTION 2, T3S,
R3E, SBBM.
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WHEREAS, Energy Unlimited, Inc. (the "applicant") has filed an application with the
Bureau of Land Management for a proposal to amend a right-of-way grant to add 42 acres
of public lands for the installation of 6 300-foot tall Nordex 1 Megawatt wind turbines on
public lands in unincorporated Riverside County,easterly of Whitewater Canyon Road and
northerly of Interstate 10, Section 2, T3S, R3E, SBBM; and
WHEREAS, development of this site is subject to approval by the United States
Department of the Interior/Bureau of Land Management; and
WHEREAS, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has submitted the Environmental
Assessment for this project to the City in accordance with a recorded Settlement
Agreement between the BLM and the City of Palm Springs, which requires the BLM to
forward all Environmental Review materials to the City for a thirty (30) day review and
comment period in the event that any current or future right-of-way holder proposes to
make any substantial change to their plan of operation or to modify their right-of-way
grant; and
WHEREAS, the subject property was studied in conjunction with the annexation of the
northern portions of the city and the sphere-of-influence in 1991-92 and is near the current
city limit; and
WHEREAS, the entire site was recommended for a designation of "C" (Conservation) in
conjunction with the annexation study for the northern area of the City in 1991-92, where
development would typically be limited and the preservation of the land as open space is
encouraged; and
WHEREAS, the application contemplates the installation of 6 Nordex 1 Megawatt wind
turbines, in a north/south array; and
WHEREAS, the development contemplated under this application is the second phase of '
a three-phase upgrade of the existing WECS, where a total of 90 older model wind.turbines
will be replaced with 19 technologically advanced wind turbines of higher capacity and
greater efficiency; and
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Page 2
WHEREAS, the new wind turbines are proposed to be located on rim and slope areas of
Painted Hill, on a prominent ridgeline on the east side of the community of Bonnie Bell,
where the viewsheds are much more prominent than a majority of the existing wind
turbines in WECS 71, which are located on top of Alta Mesa, on ridgelines west of Bonnie
Bell; and
WHEREAS, in 1992, Mesa Wind Developers entered into a Settlement Agreement and
relocated 24 wind turbines to locations further west on the ridge of Alta Mesa, beyond the
viewshed of the community of Bonnie Bell, to mitigate visual and noise concerns raised
by residents of Bonnie Bell; and
WHEREAS, the BLM Environmental Assessment for the proposed project identifies
landform and visual impacts as a result of the proposed project as a residual environmental
impact, even after mitigation measures have been imposed upon the proposed development;
and
WHEREAS, the Environmental Assessment included a Project Alternatives analysis in
accordance with National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Guidelines; and
WHEREAS, a Visual Resource Management Evaluation was prepared in accordance with
the requirements of the BLM and NEPA to specifically assess the visual environment and
resulting contrast of the visual environment from Bonnie Bell; and
WHEREAS, the Visual Resource Management Evaluation concluded that strategic
locations in less visible or less sensitive areas which minimize disturbance and repetition
of basic elements should be considered; and
WHEREAS, the proposed Right-of-Way grant is an area specifically excluded in the
original Bureau of Land Management Discussion of Options document due to the aesthetic
impacts of Wind Energy Development of this site to the community of Bonnie Bell and on
the overall scenic quality of the western Coachella Valley; and
WHEREAS, the Planning Commission has previously reviewed the project and the
Environmental Assessment for the application at its meeting of July 14, 1999, and made
recommendations to the BLM to consider potential mitigations as recommended in the
Visual Resource Management Evaluation prepared in conjunction with the Environmental
Assessment for the project; and
WHEREAS, the City Council reviewed the project and the Environmental Assessment for
the application at its meeting of July 21, 1999, and made recommendations to the BLM not
to extend the right-of-way grant as proposed, given that the development of the subject
property will cause a significant environmental impact due to the visual impacts the
development would create from the community of Bonnie Bell, Interstate 10, Highway 62
and other scenic corridors within the Coachella Valley.
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NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that, based upon the foregoing, the City
Council of the City of Palm Springs recommends as follows:
1. The City Council opposes the approval of Right-of-Way Grant CACA-17I92 to add
42 acres for the purposes of installing six (6) new Nordex 1 Megawatt wind
turbines on the property contemplated under the proposed Right-of-Way grant. '
2. The City Council concurs with the recommendations of the Visual Resource
Management Evaluation, recommending alternative site/locational studies for the
proposed wind turbines, specifically focusing on the exploration of retrofitting
existing wind turbines with a reduced number of more efficient wind turbines on
existing BLM rights-of-way on the floor of the Coachella Valley, which could
improve the overall aesthetics of the immediate area. This direction is consistent
with the City of Palm Springs General Plan objective of discouraging WECS
development in ridgeline and steep slope situations due to the visual impacts created
by the turbines and landform alterations associated with grading for access roads
and footings for individual wind turbines for areas designated for Open Space land
uses.
ADOPTED this 21stday of- July 1999.
AYES: Members Barnes, Hodges, Oden, Reller-Spurgin and Mayor Kleindienst
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ABSTAIN: None '
A EST: CITY OF PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA
By
Cit} anager �' City Clerk
REVIEWED AND APPROVED AS TO FORM: t1 _