OCEAN CITY – The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) has twice ruled in favor of Ocean Wind LLC’s preferred route for high voltage transmission cables that will carry energy from the company’s wind farm to a grid connection in Beesley’s Point in Upper Township.
In September 2022, NJBPU ruled against the challenge Ocean City mounted to the route, even in the face of the state’s long tradition of home rule with respect to such issues.
In February, NJBPU again overruled local control when it ruled in favor of Ocean Wind LLC’s petition for the route over the objections of the governing body of Cape May County.
The Danish firm, Ørsted, has designated a route that has the cables from the Ocean Wind I project come onto shore under Ocean City’s 35th Street beach.
The cables will then run under the municipality’s streets to the back bay. They will cross the bay on county land and make their way to Upper Township to the site of the former B.L. England generating station.
NJBPU’s power to override local and county objections stems from a 2021 state statute that allows the board to preempt local government approval concerning property interests considered “reasonably necessary” for the construction and operation of a qualified offshore wind project.
In a Feb. 24 ‘Mayor’s Update’ on Ocean City’s website, Mayor Jay Gillian said that the city has filed an appeal with the state Appellate Division, and he indicated that the county may follow with a similar action.
Throughout the process leading to the NJBPU decisions, attorneys for Ocean City and Cape May County have reminded the board that the statute they relied on for the power to override local control has never been tested in court. It seems it now will be.
Sea Isle City – Why are we paying two construction officials hundreds of thousands of salaries and they can’t even have buildings that are destroyed by a fire demolished in a timely manner. It’s been 7 months. We…
