Maine Supreme Court Dismisses Final Appeal of Rollins Wind Power Project

The Maine Supreme Judicial Court has upheld the dismissal of opponents’ appeal of the permit issued by the Lincoln Planning Board for the construction of First Wind’s Rollins wind power project (the link will open a PDF of the decision).  The Law Court ruling issued yesterday means that the 60-megawatt Rollins Project now has all final, non-appealable permits needed for development.

The unanimous opinion affirmed a decision by the Penobscot County Superior Court, which had earlier upheld a ruling by the Lincoln Board of Appeals that the project opponents, Friends of Lincoln Lakes (“FOLL”), lacked standing to appeal First Wind’s planning board permit.  The Court found that FOLL had failed to show that it would suffer any particularized injury from the project or that it had participated in the planning board proceeding that it was attempting to overturn

The Law Court’s ruling paves the way for First Wind to start construction of the 40-turbine Rollins Project in Lincoln, Maine, and surrounding towns.  Verrill Dana attorneys Juliet Browne, Scott Anderson, Jamie Kilbreth and Gordon Smith represented First Wind in the appeal.