VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Residents in the Croatan neighborhood of Virginia Beach recently got an update on the Dominion Energy offshore wind turbine project.
After meeting with Dominion representatives on Wednesday, many residents tell News 3 they still have concerns regarding the construction noise, environmental damage, and ocean views.
“We’re gonna turn around in 10 to 15 years and say this was the wrong thing to do. This is the wrong place to put 900-foot towers in the middle of the ocean,” said one resident, Patrick McLaughlin.
Another resident, John Knight, says he would've never agreed to this project if he had all of the information up front.
“Nobody came to our door and said your house is going to be shaking for almost a year. I would not have been okay with that," he said.
There are several elements of concern, according to residents. With the onshore portion of construction going on day and night, they say it is way too loud, with some even saying the construction vibrations are causing cracks in their walls.
Virginia Beach
VB residents say Dominion Energy wind turbine project is causing issues
They made their feelings known to Dominion at Wednesday’s meeting.
“I think that positive dialogue between us and our neighbors is definitely beneficial for the project going forward,” said Jeremy Slayton, a spokesperson with Dominion.
Slayton says the company is working to address the concerns of those living near the shore. They’ve put quieter reverse alarms on the trucks, put up sound buffers in the area, and even installed a second device to monitor sound and vibrations.
“It will continue to be there to monitor that sound, the acoustic sound and the vibration monitoring, throughout the project,” Slayton said.
In addition, residents and workers at local historical preservation sites say they were promised they would not be able to see the turbines, which are about 27 miles off the coast.
“With the curvature of the Earth, they are going to be difficult to see from shore. Now there are circumstances like at higher elevations where they may be more visible,” Slayton said.
There are only two in place currently, with plans to build 176 more. The additional turbines will be about 200 feet taller and will also be 27 miles out.
"Why do you go to the beach? A big part of the reason for me is to look out at the ocean and get away from the concrete jungle, and we're going to be staring at another concrete jungle on the ocean. It really sucks," Knight said.
The turbines will extend east 15 more miles, and will also have lights on them to warn aircraft of their presence. Slayton says these lights won’t be constantly running so residents don’t have to see them, and they will be taking steps to make the turbines less visible.
“We’re going to paint them a light gray color so they blend in better to that background,” he told News 3.
However, even though steps are being taken to make amends, some residents, like McClaughlin, have their doubts about the long term effects of this project, especially when it comes to wildlife in the area.
“They don’t know if it’s killing the whales, I mean how can you continue when you may be killing the whales? And they don’t have proof that they’re not,” McLaughlin said.
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Residents say they didn't know the full scope of the project before it started. News 3 asked Slayton about this, and he provided 7 dates of office hours and open houses prior to the meeting on March 27 where residents had the chance to talk with Dominion about the project.
The on shore portion of construction near the Croatan neighborhood is due to be complete later this year. The full project will power around 660,000 homes in the region.
