The US based Vision Energy has already won approval from the Iroquois and Ford county boards and the project is now under planning staff review in Livingston county.
Kankakee County Zoning Board members asked a wide variety of questions from impacts on property values, migratory birds and flight paths for the Greater Kankakee Airport; to the use of local labor, noise, decommissioning guarantees, contract transfers if the firm is sold, and more.
Vision Energy President Turner Hunt said that the firm expects to employ 150 construction workers for 10 to 12 months — and up to 250 at the peak of construction, most of them to be employed from local labor unions.
Permanent jobs will be created for 20 to 30 wind turbine technicians electrical and maintenance employees who will live in the area and most likely to be hired from the area, Turner Hunt said.
The wind farm will add value to local farms without decreasing other property values, Turner Hunt said, noting that it will provide participating landowners with an alternate drought resistant income that will help sustain agriculture. Across the four counties, the firm projects payout of $50 million over time to about 250 participating landowners, with $15 million to about 90 in Kankakee county.
