$3.7M loan earmarked to power wind hub

Confident that the large wind-farm projects pending in Ohio will win state approval, Hardin County officials say they have positioned their region to be the center of it all.

Hardin County commissioners and the Ohio Department of Development announced yesterday that a $3.7 million stimulus loan will help pay for a distribution center for massive wind-turbine parts expected to roll into Ohio.

The State Controlling Board still must approve the loan, which eventually will be forgiven if certain conditions are met.

The hub will be built along short-line railroad tracks just outside the village of Dunkirk near Rt. 81, about 75 miles northwest of Columbus.

The developer, American Rail Center and its owner, James Jacobs, will pay for the remainder of the $4.9 million project. Officials are promising 25 permanent jobs at first, with the expectation of more in later phases.

Four wind-farm applications are pending with the Ohio Power Siting Board. Two of them are planned for Hardin County, including what would be by far the largest, with a projected 200 turbines spread across 20,000 acres.

Wind turbines can be nearly 500 feet tall. Having facilities that can handle the transport of the large and heavy components is critical, said Tim Mayly, Hardin County's coordinator of renewable energy.

At first, the hub will serve as a distribution center, where the turbine parts will come in by rail and then be loaded onto tractor-trailers and trucked to the wind farms, Mayly said.

The long-term goal is to manufacture and assemble the parts on site, he said.

The transport of the large steel turbines will require road improvements along certain routes, which have yet to be determined, he added.

Tom Stacy is a Logan County landowner who was among the first western Ohio residents to oppose the plans for wind farms in Ohio. He said he doubts that the 25 jobs promised as part of this package will be permanent because even if the Hardin County projects are approved, those 235 turbines could be built and erected in less than two years.

"This is analogous to building a bridge to nowhere," Stacy said. "If the state wants to build a bridge with $3.7 million, they should consider building a bridge to a balanced budget and lower tax rates for all industries, businesses and residents."

But John Hohn, vice president of economic development for the Hardin County Chamber & Business Alliance, said the loan deal positions the county as a leader in wind energy.