During the recent Navajo County Board of Supervisors meeting, many county citizens came forward to express their concerns with a proposed wind farm in the Chevlon Canyon area south of Joseph City. Not to be confused with the Chevlon Butte Wind Farm project already underway by the same developer, this new endeavor will encompass approximately 52,000 acres, produce 500 megawatts of electricity and employ 500 people during the construction. The project will be developed largely on private land owned by Aztec Cattle and Land Co.
The applicant has projected commercial operation to begin in 2025 and it will feature 104 wind turbines and up to six permanent meteorological towers.
Some concerns expressed included noise, unsightly towers and damage to the landscape and wildlife in the area especially on private property.
The applicant, AES Corp. presented studies showing no negative impact on rural, residential or agricultural property values due to the construction of the wind farm. In fact, according to AES, it is projected the wind farm will contribute $1.7 million in property tax revenue for surrounding school districts in the first year.
The applicant agreed to the addition of a condition to their special use permit which states, “The setbacks for wind turbines from any adjacent, non-participating, privately owned property on the western boundary of this project shall be one half mile.”
Despite the lengthy and contentious public hearing, the board approved the special use permit and construction is set to begin in 2023.
In other business, the board:
* Approved warrant and voucher reports over $1,000 for August.
* Approved a special permit for construction of a 200-megawatt solar power generation facility southwest of Joseph City near the existing Cholla Power Plant.
* Approved constable reports for the Kayenta precinct for July and Pinetop-Lakeside precinct for August.
* Approved fiscal year end fund transfers.
* Approved a certificate of removal of abatement purging record of tax, penalty and interest on personal property taxes. After research by NCSO, assessor’s and treasurer’s offices, property taxes were unable to be collected due to inability to locate property, it’s owner or successors and/or company closed/assets seized, or property removed. These have been removed from the tax roll by the Assessor’s Office.
* Accepted a grant in the amount of $10,800 from the office of the State of Arizona’s Attorney General Victim’s Rights Program to the NCSO to fund 38.8% of the salary and employee related expenses for the Victim’s Rights Program secretary.
* Approved a purchase in the amount of $108,691 of a Ford F-350 transit van for the NCSO jail facility to replace a current high mileage vehicle in its fleet. * Approved an amendment to an intergovernmental agreement between the Navajo County Public Health District and the Arizona Department of Health Services (AZDHS) extending grant funding through fiscal year 2022-23. The extension continues to provide funds for public health emergency preparedness staff.
* Approved a contract in the amount of $2,000 per month for consulting services and administration coordination between the county, City of Winslow and the United States Army Corps of Engineers on next steps toward design and construction of the Little Colorado River Levee with former Public Works Director John Osgood.
* Approved a letter of sympathy to the family of former Supervisor Johnny Butler.
* Approved an amendment to an intergovernmental agreement between the public health district and the AZDHS to allow additional time to spend down grant funding towards COVID response and testing activities.
* Proclaimed the month of September as “Navajo County Preparedness Month 2022.”
* Upheld the assessor’s decision on review of real property valuation following a public hearing. The petitioner, Jay Conley stated the 53-acre pasture has a long history of agriculture use but has lapsed in its agricultural designation in the last fiscal year. It was determined by the Navajo County Assessor’s Office that it is not currently being used for cattle grazing and therefore will need to reapply for agricultural classification. The assessor deemed a $1,054,733 cash valuation on the property.
* Approved a contract in the amount of $353,078 with Arizona Lines, LLC for pavement markings throughout Navajo County.
* Approved a renewal of an agreement between the Arizona Department of Housing and Navajo County to enforce installation standards for quality and safety of manufactured homes, factory-built buildings and mobile homes.
* Postponed a presentation by Assistant County Manager Bryan Layton on the creation of a cohesive signage project for the county.
* Entered an executive session to receive legal advice on a broadband contract for middle mile construction with WANRack, LLcc. Following the session, the board amended a previously adopted resolution and withdrew from contract negotiations with WANRack and approved moving forward with the process of negotiating with a replacement company, EX2.
* Heard a presentation from the County Supervisor’s Association (CSA) for fiscal year 2021-22 including the recent legislative session. CSA Executive Director Craig Sullivan spoke about CSA introduced bills in the state legislature. A full list of those bills can be found at www.countysupervisors.org.
The next meeting of the Navajo County Board of Supervisors will be held at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 27 in the board chambers, located at 100 E. Code Talkers Drive.
