AmerenIP has plans to erect a new 138KV transmission line right through the middle of the beautiful Fox River Valley. Over the course of the project planning, they have shown little regard for the effects this will have on the largest natural resource in this community, the wildlife in this wonderful natural habitat, the families living in the area, and the safe operation of businesses along the route.
The Fox River Alliance does not wish to stand in the way of progress. The planning for this line, however, has been inconsiderate, ill advised, and most likely illegal. The Fox River Alliance would like this process reviewed, and the line moved to a better route. This Ameren plan is a horrible abuse of power and a dangerous example of corruption in state regulatory agencies. Completion of this project, as proposed, is clearly not in the best public interest.
As of September 29, 2009, the Illinois Commerce Commission has responded to public outcry and reopened this case for the route to be reconsidered. We now have a legal avenue to make our case, and insure fairness in the ultimate routing of this transmission line.
As of October 11, 2009, we hired an environmental expert, who is working at half his regular rate because of the specifics of this case. We are asking for donations of any size to cover his costs. No money is going to Fred, or any volunteer working on this project. Every volunteer is actually contributing money to the fund. If we can get up to a few hundred people to kick in $20 or $50 or more if possible, we can cover all the expenses associated with this expert. Click here to Donate Now .
As of December 15, 2009, with our extension granted, we have submitted convincing evidence on our behalf. Kirk Smith has proposed a low impact route that leaves the Ottawa substation to the west along an industrial corridor and then north across largely open farm fields to join the already approved LaSalle Wedron transmission corridor. One variation on this route avoids every home by more than 200 feet. In contrast, previously proposed Ameren routes came close to 80 to 155 homes. We believe that this proposed route will meet all the need of AmerenIP, while having a minimal impact to the Fox River Valley, the local residents, and indeed, the entire community. This idea was first proposed by the Ottawa city engineer, David Noble, back in April of 2007. Ameren ignored evidence that this would be a suitable alternative to their high impact routes. Now, we have the unusual oppurtunity to enter this route concept into consideration. We think, that with proper deliberation, the Illinois Commerce Commission will approve a route that is substantially similar to the “Smith ALT#2B Route”, which has shown to have a number of advantages over other routes under condsideration.
The focus of these meetings was on coordinating testimony from several individuals. At this point, we have coordinated all of the testimony and are waiting to hear a response from Ameren.
Judge Albers established an initial schedule for the case, giving us until November 30 to present our case, in the form of written evidence. By December 22, Ameren has agreed to respond to that testimony. On January 5, 10AM, in Springfield, another status hearing will be held to determine the remaining schedule, including deadlines for staff input and scheduling of evidenciary hearings where all witnesses can be cross examined. Then, the judge will propose a ruling, with time for everyone to take exception to portions of the rulings and rebuttals to the exceptions. Then, he will recommend a ruling to the ICC. This schedule was extended a few weeks, but it was still challenging to meet. We did get everything in on schedule and, at this point, Ameren is considering how to reply.
Incredible thanks to the 100+ people that showed up to support our position. Five people made statements, limited to 3 minutes each (Twila Yednok, Kirk Smith, Matthew Nelson, Katie Trocolli, & Fred Morelli). The commission decided to, on their own motion, unanimously, reopen this case for further consideration. This was a HUGE victory, and allows us to make a compelling argument, in the upcoming proceedings, that a route should be chosen in the best public interest. The river valley seems to be much safer now, but the fight is not yet complete.
September 29, 2009 - Please don't send any more letters.
We won this battle
Now that the Ottawa City Council has withdrawn from their agreement,
more legal proceedings are under way.
This was the time to write letters for maximum impact.
Instructions on how to do this can be found
here
.
At this point, please hold off on letters.
We won at the Illinois Commerce Commission.
Due to unprecedented attendance by Fox River Alliance member, the Dayton Township Board passed a resolution opposing the power line route down the Fox River Valley.
The Ottawa City Council voted on a resolution to withdraw their support of the agreement that allowed Ameren to get approval for this route. They voted unanimously in favor of this new resolution. With this resolution in hand, it is much more likely that the Illinois Commerce Commission will reopen the case, and pending court cases will have a greater chance of succeeding. This is not the end of the process, but it is a really good start.
Kevin Kanaski represented the Fox River Alliance at the Friends of the Fox board meeting. They agree that this would be an ecological disaster, among other things. We are pursuing more contacts with them. Please support them at their website .
No decision yet, but further arguments were presented. They were asked if they wanted to be the local officials that allowed the destruction of the Fox River Valley. Their support is pending.
Several council members were surprised to hear about how they were misled by the process that got them into the Stipulation Agreement. It is possible that they will overturn their decision.
Fred Morelli met with Ameren attorney, Mr. Fitzgerald, and one other Ameren attorney. It was a cordial meeting, but there were no significant breakthroughs. Ameren is still convinced it is in their best interest to build the lines along the approved route, despite our opposition. I suspect that with time, we can raise enough concern with the right courts and government agencies, where they may reconsider, but that has clearly not yet happened. So, we continue to need to raise public awareness of this situation.
Ameren has a poor history with environmental issues, and this pending environmental disaster should be averted for the best interests of Ameren and our community. It may take some time to convince them. We will need a lot of help in the coming days to do just that.
Fred Morelli made an excellent presentation. The council have been asked to take a stand on this project, and everyone provided a lot of information to consider. They requested copies of the aerial photos, which they will get soon. Supervisor Phyllis seemed quite interested, as well as several board members.
I must believe that there have never been that many people at any Dayton Township board meeting in history. The estimated attendance was around 100 Dayton residents, including many Skydive Chicago residents. Officially, the 2000 census puts Dayton at 1,685 residents total. This turnout was more than significant. THANKS TO EVERYONE that showed up. The visual impact of that many people seemed to make a difference in the reaction of the board.
Ottawa Mayor Bob Eschbach spoke about the planning process and expressed some willingness to help. He is not happy with any of the 3 routings that were considered, and spoke of a fourth westerly route, or even more unspecified routes. He rode the Illinois Railnet tracks earlier in the week, and saw, first hand, the path of intended destruction. He has agreed to bring the matter up to the Ottawa City Council. Fred is preparing some talking points. This does not guarantee their support, but is encouraging.