Current Development Projects
Altamont Winds LLC, CUP Application No. PLN2014-00056, Summit Wind Repower Project
Altamont Winds LLC, applied (March 2014) for a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) to allow the Summit Wind Repower Project, to replace 569 wind turbines in the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area (APWRA), with up to 33 new turbines with a production capacity of 54 megawatts (MW). The project area includes 17 parcels over about 3,470 acres located in the eastern Altamont Hills, between the Contra Costa County line and Interstate I-580, and mainly west of Dyer Road and the portion of Altamont Pass Road between Carroll Road and Dyer Road. It also proposed one turbine on one parcel east of Dyer Road approximately a half mile north of Altamont Pass Road, and the project area extends to the northeast and northwest from the north end of Dyer Road to the County line. The remainder of the wind farm assets held by Altamont Winds, Inc. (an affiliate of Altamont Winds LLC), an estimated 469 wind turbines located to the east on other properties in the APWRA and north of I-580, are not part of the Summit Wind Repower Project, but will be decommissioned under Altamont Winds Inc.'s separate permit conditions (Permit Extension, PLN2014-00028), and may be repowered in the future with a separate project proposal.
The proposed project is consistent with the Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area (APWRA) Repowering Program, and the Final Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR), which was certified by the East County Board of Zoning Adjustments (EBZA)on November 12, 2014 (SCH# 2010082063). The project is therefore being reviewed as a tiered project with a checklist pursuant to Section 15168(c) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines. A link to the checklist, and supporting document attachments is provided below. Based on the checklist, a Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program has been proposed, the implementation of which would be required as a condition of approval.
Public hearings were held on November 19, 2015 and January 12, 2016 before the EBZA, and at the second of these hearings the EBZA approved the project, with changes including approval of 27 turbines only. Two of the original 33 proposed turbines were withdrawn by the Applicant due to proximity to the Brushy Peak Regional Preserve after negotiation with the East Bay Regional Park District; another four turbines were disallowed by the EBZA due to aesthetic and other concerns expressed by nearby rural residential property owners on Dyer Road. Links to the notices, together with Staff Reports, draft and final resolutions and related supporting materials are provided below.
CEQA Documents
- Environmental Checklist, with Table of Contents (PDF - 598kb)*
- Attachment A: Application Supporting Materials (PDF - 18.6mb)*
- Attachment B: State or County Designated Scenic Roads (PDF - 18kb)*
- Attachment C: Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program (PDF - 314kb)*
- County Clerk Declaration and State Notice of Determination (PDF - 123kb)*
Staff Report and Related Materials
- Notice of Hearing, November 19, 2015 (PDF - 17kb) *
- Staff Report to EBZA, November 19, 2015 (PDF - 406kb) *
- Draft Resolution, November 19, 2015 (PDF - 470kb) *
- Exhibit A: Written Findings of Significant Effects (PDF - 739kb) *
- Exhibit B: Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting (PDF - 199kb) *
- Exhibit C: Statement of Overriding Considerations (PDF - 171kb) *
- Re-Notice of Hearing, January 14, 2016 (PDF - 12kb) *
- Staff Report to EBZA, January 14, 2016 with compiled comments (PDF - 4mb) *
- Final Resolution, January 14, 2016 (PDF - 468kb) *
Appeals, by Altamont Winds, LLC, and Darryl Mueller, Dyer Road Resident
- Altamont Winds, LLC, Appeal Letter, 25 January 2016 (PDF - 364kb)*
- Darryl Mueller, January 20, 2016 (PDF - 108kb)*
The appeals were withdrawn on July 7, 2016, and the approval by the EBZA remains in effect.
APWRA Technical Advisory Committee - Summit Wind Turbine Micro-siting Review
- Turbine Siting Process - June 29, 2017 (PDF)*
- Turbine Siting Process - November 10, 2016 (PDF)*
- Turbine Siting Process - August 23, 2016 (PDF)*
- Noise Study (PDF)*
- Blade Throw Study (PDF)*
- Shadow Flicker Study (PDF)*
- Early Assessment of Wind Turbine Layout - Avian Report - August 11, 2014 (PDF)*
- Siting Wind Turbines to Minimize Raptor Collisions - December 8, 2016 (PDF)*
- Turbine Setback Measurements - June 23, 2017 (PDF)*
- Turbine Road Base Map - 1544 (Smallwood Recommendations) - January 31, 2017 (PDF)*
- Turbine Moves (Smallwood Recommendations) - March 2, 2017 (PDF)*
Staff Contacts
Sandra Rivera, Assistant Deputy Director
(510) 670-6526
Andrew Young, Project Planner
(510) 670-5400
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