§ 220-45. Windmills or wind generators.

The Town Planning Board may approve a special permit for a windmill or wind generator in the AR-1 Agricultural Rural Residential District, AR-2 Agricultural Rural Residential District and the RR-3 Rural Residential District, provided that, in addition to compliance with the general requirements in § 220-35 of this article, the following standards and conditions are maintained:

A. 

No site preparation or construction shall commence until final site plan approval as required by Town Code § 220-64, Authority; approval required, has been granted by the Planning Board.

B. 

Required site plan applications for a windmill or wind generator shall also show:

(1) 

Location of tower on site and tower height, including blades, rotor diameter and ground clearance.

(2) 

All utility lines both above and below ground within a radius equal to the proposed tower height, including blades.

(3) 

Design data, including dimensions for the base and footings of the proposed tower.

(4) 

Design data indicating the basis of design, including dimensional drawings, installation and operation instructions.

(5) 

Certification by a registered professional engineer or manufacturer's certification that the tower design is sufficient to withstand wind load requirements for structures.

C. 

No windmill, including blades, in any R-1-30 District shall extend more than 75 feet above the average ground level measured at the base of the tower.

D. 

No more than one windmill or tower shall be permitted as an accessory use to any property.

E. 

No windmill shall be erected in any AR-1 or RR-3 District, or in any location, where its overall height, including blades, is greater than the distance from its base to any property line.

F. 

Access to the tower shall be limited either by means of a fence six feet high around the tower base with a locking gate or by limiting tower-climbing apparatus to no lower than 12 feet from the ground.

G. 

No windmill shall be installed in any location along the major axis of an existing microwave communications link where the operation of the windmill is likely to produce an unacceptable level of electromagnetic interference, unless the applicant provides sufficient evidence satisfactory to the Planning Board indicating the degree of expected interference and the possible effect on the microwave communications link.

H. 

Windmills shall be located or installed in compliance with the guidelines of the Federal Aviation Regulations with regard to airport approach zones (15.503) and clearance around VOR and DVOR stations.

I. 

All sites proposed for windmills shall have sufficient access to unimpeded air flow for adequate operation. The Siting Handbook for Small Wind Energy Conversion Systems, PNL-2521, or other nationally recognized reference, should be used as a guide in determining the location of towers.

J. 

No windmill shall be installed in a location where the Planning Board determines the windmill to be detrimental to the general neighborhood character.

K. 

If the windmill is to be interconnected to an electric utility distribution system, the applicant shall provide evidence of approval of the proposed interconnect by the local power company.

L. 

Towers shall be located in either a rear or side yard. Applicants seeking a side yard siting shall demonstrate that such a location is essential to the viability of the proposed investment.

M. 

Guy wires and anchors for towers shall not be located closer than 10 feet to any property line and guy wires shall be fenced in for a height of six feet.

N. 

All windmills shall be designed with an automatic shutdown on governing capability in the event of over-speeding in high winds.

O. 

The minimum distance between the ground and any protruding blades shall not be less than 10 feet as measured at the lowest point of the arc of the blades.