(A) To obtain siting approval, the applicant must first submit a special use permit application to the county.
(B) The special use permit application shall contain or be accompanied by the following information:
(1) A WECS Project Summary, including, to the extent available:
(a) A general description of the project, including:
1. Its approximate overall name plate generating capacity;
2. The potential equipment manufacturer(s);
3. Type(s) of WECS(s);
4. The number of WECS, and name plate generating capacity of each WECS;
5. The maximum height of the WECS tower(s) and maximum diameter of the WECS(s) rotor(s);
6. The number of substations;
7. A project site plan, project phasing plan and project construction timeline plan; and
8. The general location of the project; and
(b) A description of the applicant, owner and operator, including their respective business structures;
(2) The name(s), address(es), and phone number(s) of the applicant(s), owner and operator, and all property owner(s), if known, and documentation demonstrating land ownership or legal control of the property;
(3) A site plan for the WECS Project showing the planned location of each WECS tower, including legal descriptions for each site, guy lines and anchor bases (if any), participating and non-participating residences, occupied community buildings, parcel boundary lines (including identification of adjoining properties), setback lines, public access roads and turnout locations, substation(s), operations and maintenance buildings, and permanent meteorological towers, electrical cabling from the WECS tower to the substation(s), ancillary equipment, third party transmission lines, the location of any wetlands, flood plain, drainage structures including surface ditches and subsurface drainage lines, underground mines, scenic and natural areas within 1,500 feet of the proposed WECS, the location of all known communications towers within two miles of the proposed WECS, and the layout of all structures within the geographical boundaries of any applicable setback;
(4) All determinations of No Hazard to Air Navigation from the Federal Aviation Administration;
(5) A proposed Decommissioning Plan for the WECS Project including cost estimations;
(6) All required studies, reports, certifications, and approvals demonstrating compliance with the provisions of this chapter;
(7) An Agricultural Impact Mitigation Agreement (AIMA) executed between the applicant and the Illinois Department of Agriculture;
(8) The topographic map shall include the WECS Project site and the surrounding area;
(9) Any other information normally required by the county as part of its permitting requirements for siting buildings or other structures;
(10) Waivers from the setback requirements executed by the occupied community building owners and/or the non-participating property owners bearing a file stamp from the County Recorder of Deeds Office confirming that the waiver was recorded against title to the affected real property;
(11) Waivers from the shadow flicker mitigation requirements executed by the occupied community building owners and/or the non-participating property owners bearing a file stamp from the County Recorder of Deeds Office confirming that the waiver was recorded against title to the affected real property;
(12) Results and recommendations from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources obtained through the Ecological Compliance Assessment Tool or a comparable successor tool;
(13) Results of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service's Information for Planning and Consulting environmental review or a comparable successor tool that is consistent with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service's Land-Based Wind Energy Guidelines;
(14) Information demonstrating that the WECS Project will avoid protected lands; and
(15) Any other information requested by the county or the county consultants that is necessary to evaluate the siting application and operation of the WECS Project and to demonstrate that the WECS Project meets each of the regulations in this chapter, including the special use permit standards set forth below.
(C) Material changes to the application are not permitted once the notice of the public hearing has been published, unless requested or permitted by the county.
(D) The applicant shall submit 12 copies of the special use permit application to the county, and at least one copy in electronic format.
(Ord. O-147-05-23, passed 5-11-2023)