It appears the proposed Wind Energy project involving the Cherokee County (AL) Parks & Recreation Board, Pioneer Green Energy and private land owners in the county will indeed move forward as planned. David Savage of Pioneer Green Energy gave a detailed presentation to those attending the most recent meeting of the Parks & Recreation Board; the presentation outlined the various stages and aspects of the project.

Afterwards, board member Virgil Adcock made a motion to enter into the agreement. Adcock along with board member Gary Bannister voted yes; meanwhile board chairman Scooter Howell voted no and board members Henry Wright and Daphne Rogers remained silent meaning the voice vote carried and the agreement was approved.

Later, there had been some discussion regarding whether or not the motion actually passed due to the fact that only two yes votes were issued out of the five board members, with some claiming, that three yes votes would have actually been required.

Bob McWhorter, who serves as the attorney for the Parks Board, said that he, acting as the board’s counsel; the lawyers for Pioneer Green Energy based in Texas and their lawyers in Birmingham, had all looked into that vote and had separately come to the same conclusion: that it was indeed a legal and binding, valid vote. McWhorter cited information stating, when you have a quorum present, as was the case in the park board meeting, and a vote is called for – those who remain silent are left out of the equation – thus the two-to-one vote stands.

When asked, David Savage explained what this project will mean to Cherokee County, and he said the numbers translate to approximately nine million dollars in tax revenue for the county over the life of the project, and, in addition to that – the windmills are expected to increase tourism for Cherokee County, bringing in extra dollars from outside the area.

The project will also result in new jobs, during both the construction phase and afterwards – with tentative plans for a visitor center which will be shared by Pioneer and the Park Board – that will offer educational programs promoting and explaining clean energy.

The completion date for the project could be as early as December 2013.