MAPLETON, N.D. (KFGO) – Ahead of a hearing and possible vote Thursday evening on six proposed energy bans, Geronimo Power Chief Executive Officer Blake Nixon said his company is willing to pause its data center application for six months to give Harmony Township time to evaluate the development.
Appearing Thursday morning on KFGO’s News and Views with Joel Heitkamp, Nixon said Geronimo circulated a petition giving residents the option of a six-month cooling-off period on the data center instead of the township’s proposed two-year moratorium.
“We would be happy to slow down and talk,” Nixon said. “We’ve been offering that all the way through. There’s no interest from the other side.”
Nixon also contended that any moratorium vote taken Thursday would be legally void because the township published notice only 13 days in advance, falling short of North Dakota’s 15-day requirement. He criticized supervisors for “muzzling” him and former chairman Tom Roden during Tuesday’s meeting while allowing utility companies to speak, and questioned why the township retained an out-of-state litigation firm rather than negotiating.
Newly retained township counsel had not publicly addressed the notice issue by Thursday morning, according to attorney Joel Fremstad, who represents Roden. In a statement Thursday, Fremstad questioned the mounting taxpayer expense of hiring two law firms and urged supervisors to cancel the hearings until statutory notice is met.
Hearings before the Harmony Township Zoning Commission and Board of Supervisors remain scheduled for 7 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Mapleton Community Center.
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