THE BAY CITY TIMES

Thumb town plans one-day

Sunday, July 13, 2008

By JEFF KART

jkart@bc-times.com | 894-9639

ELKTON - Julie Kreh met a group of motorcycle riders one day in downtown Elkton.

Were they regulars at the village's annual biker weekend?

No, they saw windmills from a distance, and kept on driving.

Michigan's first commercial wind farm near Elkton has been attracting tons of tourists since 32 Vestas turbines were erected last year in Oliver and Chandler townships in Huron County, each standing about 400 feet tall.

The Harvest Wind Farm, owned by John Deere Wind Energy, has now sprouted its own festival, a Wind Turbine Day planned for Saturday on Main Street in Elkton.

The event will feature guided bus tours of the windmills, a screening of ''Kilowatt Ours,'' a documentary on energy conservation; a 5K walk and run, bicycle tour, softball tournament, live music and family activities.

Kreh, an organizer, is a member of the Elkton Chamber of Commerce, which she said gets up to 30 calls a day from people who want to see the windmills.

She also runs a portable toilet and septic cleaning business, which is how she became acquainted with the turbine project. Every windmill site for Harvest had a Porta-John for construction workers.

Kathy Kinkema, with a group called Bay County Citizens Exploring Clean Energy, hasn't seen the Thumb windmills and can't wait to go.

She's organizing a bus tour, leaving from Essexville at 8 a.m. Saturday, for Wind Turbine Day. There's room for 47 people on the Mitchell Motorcoach she's reserved.

''We just thought that maybe if we could bring together a group of people, it would be easier to see that there are people out there that are interested in this in our community,'' Kinkema said of windmills and alternative energy.

Her group was formed out of pollution concerns from a new coal-fired power plant planned for the Consumers Energy Karn-Weadock complex in Bay County 's Hampton Township .

To reserve a spot on the bus, call Michigan State University Extension at 895-4026. The cost is $10 per person.

Most events at the festival are free, save for a $3 button to take separate bus tours and $7 for a barbecued pork dinner. More information is online at elktonchamber.com.

Wind Turbine Day is meant to educate people about the Harvest windmills, which are capable of generating enough power to supply about 15,000 homes, and answer common questions the chamber hears, Kreh said.

Like 'Why aren't they all spinning? Because a few of the turbines are always down for routine maintenance.

Kinkema is excited about Wind Turbine Day.

''I'm amazed,'' she said. ''When you think of a small community like Elkton, and how they've accomplished what they've done, I think it's great ...

''They'll be able to give a lot of information to communities on the pros and cons of what they learned in doing this.''

More windmills are already under construction in nearby Bingham and Sheridan townships by another company.

Noble Environmental Power of Connecticut company recently began work on sites for 46 General Electric turbines, capable of generating 1.5 megawatts each.

Kreh said she expects more than 1,000 people at Wind Turbine Day.

''We have been getting tons of calls from the Ludington area,'' which also is being courted by wind developers.

She hopes people take advantage of the organized tours.

Some sight-seers have been trampling on private property to see the turbines.

A farmer in Oliver Township found a bikini-clad woman and a man eating a sandwich in a field near one windmill, Kreh said. Motorists also have been stopping in the road near windmills, blocking farm equipment from getting by.

So far, Kreh likes the windmills.

''You listen to it on a quiet day, you hear a whooshing noise. It kind of sounds like the waves lapping at the lakes.''

She said windmills have changed the rural landscape in the Thumb, and people seem to be embracing the new look.

A photographer from Caseville is already selling postcards of the Harvest windmills at local stores.

Kreh said the windmills also may be appearing in ads for Dodge trucks. Wind Turbine Day was funded in part with a $1,200 check paid by Chrysler for a photo shoot in front of one of the turbines.