The neighbors of the proposed wind turbine project in Freedom are asking the voters of Freedom to reinstate the Commercial Review Ordinance at the June referendum, retroactive to the date of the repeal.

This is the only way to put some reasonable standards in force.

When the town voted to repeal the ordinance last year, we were told the Planning Board would write a new one. That has not happened.

Some voters may have voted to repeal the ordinance last year because they believed the ordinance had too many mistakes to resolve easily. The truth is that items within the ordinance could have been easily amended.

I believe the real reason for the repeal effort was so that nothing would stand in the way of the developers and their investors.

Consequently, we have no protection from noise, ice throw, strobe effect, no safety setbacks, no standards of any type.

These 400-foot turbines will be located only 350 feet from our property lines. We don't even have a fall zone, much less the safety setbacks recommended by turbine manufacturers. There is no requirement that the turbines be removed when they are no longer productive. The developer can just walk away.

When the ordinance was repealed last June, owners of Beaver Ridge Wind LLC promised to obey the terms of the ordinance even though they wanted the ordinance repealed. Ask yourself why they wanted the ordinance repealed if they were willing to obey it.

Steve Bennett

Freedom