We are tired of being labeled as “less than intelligent” because we happen to support wind power. It is not about intelligence; it is about the economy of Dixfield.
We have lived here since 1963 and are upset the town’s tax base has not grown. There are no locations in Dixfield suitable for any small industry or large employer to set up business on the town’s infrastructure. So where will help come from for tax relief?
New homes seem to be the only option; the economy stopped that. Dixfield has many homes for sale waiting for families who can’t afford them.
We’re being offered the chance of a lifetime. Patriot Renewables wants to invest $40 million in the town of Dixfield. Multiply that times the current tax rate and it adds up to almost $800,000 (and does not require town infrastructure). Yes, towers depreciate over 20 years but the company also reinvests in those towers to meet changing technologies and increase efficiency.
Turbines produce power without the use of fossil fuels, but from the ever-available wind. It doesn’t matter where the power “goes” but that it “is,” and cuts back on pollution from coal- or oil-powered generators elsewhere.
What a town does with money earned from wind towers is as individual as the towns themselves. Patriot Renewables would also be required to give the town “tangible benefits,” which are calculated by multiplying the number of turbines built by $4,000 each — not tax dollars, but of great benefit to the town.
Ralph and Norine Clarke, Dixfield
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