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Nuclear plant slips away

By BARBARA BEHRENDT
Published January 1, 2007

CRYSTAL RIVER - For Citrus County, the top story of 2006 turned out to be something that didn't happen.

Despite the support of government officials and the public, despite the in-place infrastructure and available property, Progress Energy late in the year bypassed Crystal River as the site for its next nuclear power plant.

Instead, citing the need for a higher, drier, separate location, the company announced that it had settled on 3,000 rural acres in Levy County, just past the Citrus County line, as the possible site of its next $2.5-billion nuclear power generating unit.

Gone were Citrus officials' dreams of adding more millions of dollars in tax revenue to their annual windfall from the utility. Last year, Progress Energy shouldered 15 percent of the county's tax burden, paying more than $27-million in taxes.

In Citrus, where locals have had decades of experience with the utility company and its predecessor, Florida Power, the general sentiment was that Citrus County was the logical place for another nuclear unit to add to the four coal units already in the complex.

Over the county line, Levy officials have been more cautious, talking about the need to examine just what such a facility would mean to their largely rural community and its 38,000 residents.

Even the topic of the safety of nuclear power, which doesn't get much discussion in Citrus anymore, is on the minds of Levy residents and officials.

Undeniable is the tax benefit to Levy County if the plant were built there. But workers will also be needed and jobs will be available, opening up the need for new housing, better infrastructure and a booming economy, just like what Citrus County experienced in the 1960s and '70s when the original power plants came on line north of Crystal River.

Progress Energy predicts that the peak construction employment will be about 2,000 workers and eventually 500 full-time workers would be on-site. Annual salaries could average $80,000 to $90,000.

The utility still has much research and many regulatory hoops to clear at the local, state and federal levels before a plant could ever come on line. That prompts some, such as Citrus County's director of Development Services Gary Maidhof, to wonder if it will ever really happen in Levy.

"I wouldn't be surprised if in two years Citrus wasn't being considered again," Maidhof said.

Barbara Behrendt can be reached at behrendt@sptimes.com or 564-3621.

Past Stories of the Year in Citrus County

2005: Slaying of Jessica Lunsford and the aftermath

2004: The weather, including tropical storms Frances and Jeanne

2003: The weather, including heavy rains and flooding

2002: Halls River Retreat and growth management

2001: Terrorist attacks and what came afterwards

2000: The weather, including the drought and brush fires

1999: Juvenile violent crime

1998: The weather, including floods in Arrowhead, excessive rain and tornadoes

The Citrus Times news staff determines the story of the year.

[Last modified December 31, 2006, 20:48:54]