KRVN 880 – KRVN 93.1 – KAMI - County Supervisors Approve Road Agreement for Wind Turbine Project

During the regular session of the Custer County Board of Supervisors this week, several key issues were addressed, including the road agreement with Invenergy for the Prairie Hills Wind project, zoning amendments and other county matters. 

Prairie Hills Wind Project Road Agreement 

In reviewing previous discussions from the March Board of Supervisors meeting when Lindsay Mouw and Alex Chandler, representatives from Invenergy, provided an update on the Prairie Hills Wind Project. The project, located south of Mason City and extending west toward Highway 183, has been under development since pre-construction environmental surveys were conducted between 2017 and 2019. Spanning approximately 46,000 acres, the project is under a 10-year lease for development. 

Mouw announced plans to install 46 wind turbines, creating the Prairie Hills Wind Energy Center, a 200-megawatt (MW) facility capable of powering over 84,000 U.S. homes. 

Fast forward during today’s meeting in addressing the expected wear on local roads caused by heavy construction traffic, County Highway Superintendent Chris Jacobsen worked with Invenergy to identify approximately 29.5 miles of impacted roads, including: 

• 24.2 miles of Custer County roads, 

• 2.5 miles in Algernon Township, and 

• 2.8 miles in Elk Creek Township. 

Two road agreement proposals were presented during the meeting: 

1. A three-party agreement where Custer County and the townships would each form separate agreements with Prairie Hills Wind, LLC. 

2. A joint agreement with the County taking the lead on behalf of itself and the townships in negotiations with Prairie Hills Wind, LLC. 

An Invenergy representative emphasized that the agreement commits them to restoring all affected roads to “equal or better condition” than before. Jacobsen will oversee hiring an independent firm to conduct a pre-construction road condition study, which will establish baseline data for the project. 

Representatives from both Algernon and Elk Creek townships were present and expressed support for the unified agreement led by the County. The motion passed with only Supervisor Gibbons voting ‘no’ vote against the agreement, citing concerns with the language around project timeline commitments. 

Arnold Township Completes Repayment of County Disaster Loan 

Tony Eggleston appeared before the Custer County Board of Supervisors on behalf of Arnold Township to address the status of disaster relief loans granted to the township in the aftermath of the 2019 flood. 

Eggleston reported that the repair project was completed by the end of 2023. All required documentation had been submitted by mid-2023, and an official inspection of the completed work took place in the fall. While the project has been fully approved and finalized, Eggleston noted that as of Tuesday morning, the township had yet to receive the expected FEMA reimbursement of $218,463. 

To fund the recovery work, Arnold Township received two $100,000 loans from the county, which Eggleston described as essential “seed money” that enabled the township to invest over $600,000 in repairs and infrastructure restoration following the disaster. 

Eggleston expressed appreciation to the current and previous boards for their support and flexibility, including loan extensions. He concluded by presenting a check for the remaining loan balance of $95,873.23 to Board President Chip Blowers, officially marking the repayment of the county’s assistance. 

Public Hearings and Zoning Amendments 

The Board held and approved multiple public hearings related to zoning regulation updates: 

Resolution #71Z-25 – Construction Batch Plant Use 

This amendment removes the requirement for a conditional use permit for temporary batch plants (operating 10 months or less) in specific zones: 

• Permitted in AG-G and AG-T zones. 

• Conditional use in the VAD zone. 
  Batch plants operating 11 months or more will now require a conditional use permit in the AG-G zone. 

Resolution #72Z-25 – AG-G Zoning Setback Adjustments 

The new setback requirements read: 

• Front, rear, and side setbacks: 58 feet from the centerline of a county road. 

• Front setbacks on federal/state highways: 25 feet from the right-of-way line. 

• Rear and side setbacks: 25 feet from property lines. 

Resolution #73Z-25 – AG-T Zoning Setbacks 

The same setback regulations from Resolution #72Z-25 were extended to apply to the AG-T (Agricultural Transitional) zone. 

Resolution #74Z-25 – Commercial Greenhouse Amendments 

The resolution revises permitted and conditional uses for commercial greenhouses: 

• Allows agriculture and horticulture uses, including commercial greenhouses as conditional uses (C) in AG-G, AG-T, and BAD zones. 

• Removes the “special commercial greenhouse” designation from the matrix. 

• Specifies commercial greenhouse use as permitted (P) in the BAD zone only. 

Additional Board Actions 

• Board of Equalization: Tax corrections were approved due to the removal of grain bins in 2022. A few building revaluation notices were also sent out based on depreciation. 

• Surplus Property Declaration (Resolution 12-2025): The Board approved the declaration of surplus items including Dell, ASUS, and HP ZBook laptops, along with several file cabinets from Pauline County. 

• Distress Warrants Certification: Sheriff Daniel Osmond submitted a list of distress warrants for certification, as required by the State. 

Other Business: 

• No right-of-way crossing applications were submitted. 

• Final approval or denial of the proposed conservation easement was tabled for the next meeting. 

• The Fiscal Agent for the North Central PET (Planning, Exercise, Training) was tabled pending discussions for a meeting next week to evaluate further