West Linn City Council supports ODOT solar highway: "The Oregon Department of Transportation will move ahead with plans to build the world’s largest solar highway on a hillside in West Linn after receiving the city council’s go-ahead for additional studies Monday night.
More than 100 people crowded into council chambers at city hall and spilled into an overflow room to watch a live feed of the meeting on Willamette Falls Television.
While most were residents of West Linn, many came from Oregon City to voice concerns about property values and the impact on their views from across the Willamette River. The solar highway, which would generate power using thousands of panels during the day to offset the cost of lighting the highway at night, could produce as much as 3 megawatts each year, enough to offset one-sixth of ODOT’s energy needs in the area.
But for those in West Linn, the big issue isn’t having the solar highway in their backyard. It’s the new trail the city hopes to piggyback on the state project.
“I’m not in opposition to solar at all,” said Bill Weber, who lives on Riverknoll Way. “I am totally in opposition to the trail. … It’s going to be a disaster for those of us who live there.”"
No comments:
Post a Comment