Heron Bay Homeowners Sue To Stop Windmill

The Halus Power Systems windmill is headed for court.

Halus is a San Leandro company that refurbishes and resells used windmills for power generation.

For more than a year it has been trying to get permission to erect a windmill on its industrial property at the western end of Grant Street. 

The project has been opposed by the Heron Bay Homeowners Association, a 629-unit development located about 500 feet from the Halus property.

The homeowners say the windmill would be a noisy eyesore that would diminish their quality of life and hurt the shoreline environment. 

In February the Board of Zoning Adjustments (BZA) and rejected the objections of Heron Bay homeowners.

The homeowners appealed that decision to the San Leandro City Council.

In April the council upheld the BZA decision and gave Halus the green light to build the windmill.

Now the homeowners have taken their objections to Alameda County Superior Court, according to a report in the Contra Costa Times. 

In a nutshell, the homeowners argue that the city should have required Halus to do a full environmental impact report.

Instead, the city approved the project based on a negative declaration -- a report saying the project would not have a significant environmental impact and therefore did not need an EIR.

Now a judge will decide. There is as yet no timetable for a ruling.

Read more about the windmill project in the Patch archives.