Legalectric

As noted, the Public Utilities Commission’s job is in ST. PAUL! There are training videos on-line. Doing this together makes it way to easy to conspire — these Commissions are supposed to be independent.

Junkets are nothing new. Note that this one above is for Commissioners paid by the ratepayer. Who paid for this one for a PUC Commissioner to check out an operating coal gasification plant, ignoring the one in Indiana (operating, but they couldn’t get it running, and it took 22 engineers to get it going). From an old Legalectric post about regulatory capture:

Campaign signs on vacant lots?

Campaign signs on business property?

Have owners given permission?

Is it an in-kind corporate donation?

There’s a pattern here in Red Wing of putting campaign signs on land owned by folks far away, well, not in Red Wing, where owners do not know of campaign signs on their property. The above at Withers Harbor Dr. and Old West Main is very small spuds, but it’s a start, and it’s very doubtful the owner in Minneapolis knows about it. There were two of these smaller signs when I first saw it, now there’s one.

Hopefully in this election cycle candidate campaigns know better than to try this again, here’s one on property owned by company in Ramsey, MN, a ginormous sign that they knew nothing about… so they said and also that it was bad for business! I believe them. This wasn’t the first huge campaign sign on this roof, but it better be the last:

Or this, owned by company in Hudson, WI, who had no idea this was going on — said no knowledge — also said that it was bad for business! I believe them too!

Campaigns, just don’t. I saw a guy responsible for much of signs out in Red Wing, the Republican signs and also the Recall signs, scouting out the lot where the trailer was. There are no signs there yet, and I do hope he got the message. Just don’t!

Downloading all, here ya go:

Applicants – PowerOn Midwest

MISO

Commerce-DER

LIUNA

Let’s see, Albert Lea 10am, then Austin on Wednesday (gotta admit, I fell asleep when charging my phone!); then Zumbrota at 10am, back home then off to Kasson yesterday evening. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. Handed out at close to 400 of these. Lots of time and not much done other than yack and yack. Lots of good questions, lots of the same questions, and lots of pointed “If you’re seriously concerned, GET ON eDockets!! NO EXCUSES!” That was the message of the day… days.

The crowds were… shall I say these were highly attended? 160+ in Albert Lea, 150+ in Austin, ? in Zumbrota, and 100+ in Kasson (weird place, in the middle of the County Fairgrounds).

I did learn something at the Albert Lea open house — I’ve not been tracking routing much as it’s Certificate of Need that’s ongoing now. What I learned is that is that there’s a proposed route, though in the narrower purple line, that is right below Myre-Big Island State Park! THIS IS MY PARK!!! We camp-hosted there, and spent so much time at Big Island, meetings with Doreen Hansen and Association of Freeborn County Landowners, hearings at the college:

You’d think they’d avoid a State Park? It’s also going through the Freeborn Wind project area, the landowners there getting hit again.

And speaking of viewsheds, here’s the poop… The blob of land where the “38” is, that’s Big Island, the campground is up against the water. I went to the park after the open house, killing time on the way to Austin…

From Google, here’s the Island, showing the campground.

Sites 1-5 are on that upper loop, along the road next to the lake. the furthest site, at that crossover is site, the camp host site. Sites 1-4 have the best internet on the island, have officed there many times, particularly during the Freeborn Wind fiasco (WS-17-410).

And at Site 1 way back when, before meeting Doreen Hansen, Association of Freeborn County Landowners:

Here’s what I found at Big Island. Standing at the lake by the bench across from Site 1 yesterday, though I had my directions off, and due south is a bit to the left. There was a loon just off the shore! And those lattice towers would be how far above that treeline? Impact on State Park viewshed, anyone?

Also, look at those protected areas south of the lake — I can’t imagine they’d really route it through this area, but knowing how this works, I’ll be taking a close look at the other route on the north side of Albert Lea, and on the lookout on other route issues proposed for this long route.

We’ll see how this goes. It’s not really time to look at routing, I’ve been working on rustling up participation in this Certificate of Need docket, and routing, that’s not a job for North Route Group and NO765MN, but it sure got my attention!!

Here it is. Stay tuned for date(s) of public hearings — need to make solid comments, and lots of them!

In order to make a coherent comment, it’s important to read the application AND the draft permit just released. Plan on having NOT MUCH time, so be concise, AND if you have reports, studies, credible newspaper articles, hand them in as exhibits, quickly explaining what they are.

We’re ON it = time to get to work!