By the thinnest of margins, the Carroll County Quorum Court rejected a proposed ordinance that would have regulated setback distances and sound limits for towers installed in the county.
The 6-5 vote at the quorum court’s regular meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 15, was the defining moment of a contentious meeting that lasted approximately two hours and centered on Scout Clean Energy’s plans to construct a “wind farm” near Green Forest.
The proposed ordinance, sponsored by District 1 Justice of the Peace Jack Deaton, would have applied to new towers taller than 200 feet.
Deaton voted in favor of the proposed ordinance along with District 2 JP Bruce Wright, District 3 JP Harrie Farrow, District 7 JP Kellie Matt and District 10 JP Jerry King. Voting against the measure were District 4 JP Hunter Rivett, District 5 JP Matt Phillips, District 6 JP Craig Hicks, District 8 JP Francisco Pedraza, District 9 JP Roger Hall and District 11 JP John Howerton.
Before the vote, JPs heard from several residents during public comments. They also heard from Dave Iadarola, project manager for Scout’s planned Nimbus project, which the company plans to cover 9,000 acres in Carroll County.
Deaton interjected during Iadarola’s comments to say that his proposed ordinance was not a zoning bill.
“My ordinance sets dimensions on how far you can set (a tower) from the road, how far you can set from somebody’s property line, or how far you can set from another person’s residence or a business,” Deaton said. “That has nothing to do with that landowner’s rights. We’re not zoning his property. We’re not telling him what he can and cannot do with it. We’re telling you what you can and cannot do on that property. So it’s not his rights that we’re putting an ordinance together for. It’s to try to keep your company in line to where you’re going to put this thing and not infringe on his neighbor.”
“I would respectfully disagree,” Iadarola responded. “You’re limiting what they can put on their property above 200 feet.”
Former longtime JP Larry Swofford spoke against the proposed ordinance, saying it amounted to zoning.
“You can dress this up ever how you want to,” Swofford said. “Jack Deaton, I’ve got the utmost respect for you, more than most people in this county. But you can dress this up ever how you want to; it’s county zoning. It don’t have to say county zoning to be county zoning, because it is putting restrictions on what people can do with their land. … Your job is to represent the people in your district and vote the way they would vote if they were sitting here. There’s one or two of you that your people would vote for this ordinance. But there’s nine or 10 of you that if your people were sitting here, the majority of them would vote against it.”
JPs also heard from Fayetteville attorney Matt Bishop, who represents Concerned Citizens of Carroll County — a grassroots group of residents opposed to the Nimbus project. Bishop said the quorum court does have the authority to intervene in the Nimbus project.
“You have a choice,” Bishop said. “You’re not powerless. … You have power.”
Bishop also pointed out that its July meeting, the quorum court adopted an emergency ordinance establishing regulations for “data centers” in the county.
Also during the Aug. 15 meeting, Farrow moved to table further discussion on the possible establishment of a land-use commission that would have the authority to issue permits for largescale industrial projects in the county.
Farrow’s motion did not receive a second, however, and JPs discussed the topic before voting to drop it from the agenda.
Farrow said that dropping the discussion or tabling it effectively amounted to the same end result.
“The only difference will be, if it comes back up it’ll be new business instead of old business,” she said.
The quorum court’s next regular meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 19, in the courtroom of the Carroll County Eastern District Courthouse in Berryville.
