Article published Jun 27, 2007

Proposed power plant looms large in city election

By RICHARD ECKE

Tribune Staff Writer

A majority of the seats on the Great Falls City Commission are up for election this year, amid controversy over a proposed coal-fired power plant near the city.

With one exception, the five commissioners and City Manager John Lawton have strongly backed the $720 million Highwood Generating Station. The city plans to be a 15 percent partner in the plant.

The power plant proposal has attracted criticism because of pollution concerns, its location next to a national historic landmark and financial implications for the city.

Backers say it will boost the tax base, create construction jobs and provide permanent high-paying work.

Up for election this year are the seats of Commissioners Sandy Hinz and Diane Jovick-Kuntz, and Mayor Dona Stebbins, the three female members of the commission. Commissioners Bill Beecher and John Rosenbaum won re-election in 2005. Both Beecher and Rosenbaum support the Highwood project.

Three candidates filed to run through mid-afternoon Tuesday, including Stebbins and Jovick-Kuntz. The first candidate to file was Mary Jolley, a past legislative candidate who has opposed the City of Great Falls' involvement in the power plant. Jolley has said the city should have asked the public to vote before it formed its electric utility, Electric City Power.

The deadline for candidates to file with the Cascade County Elections Office is 5 p.m. Thursday.

Hinz is the lone sitting city commissioner to strongly oppose the Highwood plant, saying she objects to burning coal to create power in the area.

Earlier this month, Hinz expressed reservations about running again. On Tuesday, she said she definitely will not run this year.

"I have made up my mind now," she said.

Hinz added that she wants to be able to visit her children and grandchildren without having to schedule around City Commission meetings.

She also said she has not enjoyed her time on the commission as a coal-fired plant critic, although she won hearty applause from plant opponents when she voted against a power-plant-related matter a few weeks ago.

She said she likes being considered "a team player," and it wasn't easy for her to break from the pack.

"I would say this last year has weighed on me more than anything," Hinz said. However, she said the proposed coal-fired plant is not the reason for her departure.

Jovick-Kuntz has voted with the commission majority in favoring the plant.

As a candidate in 2005, Stebbins expressed concern about mercury pollution from the power plant, but as mayor she has become an outspoken proponent of the project.

Stebbins noted the Norris and Mammoth thermal areas, which are natural features in Yellowstone National Park, already emit more than 200 pounds of mercury each year. That's nearly 10 times the amount of mercury the proposed Highwood Generating Station would be allowed to release, about 20.7 pounds per year, under Montana's new mercury rule. Stebbins said the latter amount is "a drop in the bucket."

"I'm not saying that we should put more of it up there," she added. Stebbins said capturing and storing carbon dioxide from the plant also is an issue.

The mayor also said the power plant "has a great deal of support from the business community."

Stebbins said she doubted the coal plant will be the key issue in this year's campaign, but "it'll be a factor."

"There are a lot of issues aside from that," Stebbins said.

City officials were angered in 2003 when NorthWestern Energy canceled its power contract with cities and school districts across the state. Great Falls eventually joined Southern Montana Electric Generation & Transmission Cooperative, the group planning the power plant.

Since then, the city has purchased power from PPL Montana through the cooperative at a lower rate than NorthWestern Energy charges.

Opponents of the power plant, notably Citizens for Clean Energy and the Montana Environmental Information Center, have mounted an effort to kill the project through public criticism, protests and administrative appeals and lawsuits.

Meanwhile, power plant backer John Lawton, the city manager, is retiring later this year, leaving the city's top administrative position up for grabs. Commissioners are working on finding a replacement for Lawton.

Plant opponents hope to use the upcoming election to reward candidates who oppose the plant and punish commissioners who have favored the project.

Power plant critics hope the result will be the same as in the 2005 Great Falls school board election, in which voters, angry over plans to close East Middle School, ousted incumbents who favored the closure.

This year's Great Falls city elections could offer an indication on how residents view the Highwood project. If incumbents are defeated, it may indicate the project has lost favor with the public, while re-election of plant backers could indicate broad support for the coal-fired facility.

"Whether it's a make or break issue, I guess I couldn't predict that," Hinz said.