History

The Windustrious Cleveland project was created by Sarah Taylor in 2006, to promote the establishment of the world’s first fresh-water wind farm – on Lake Erie, off-shore from Cleveland, Ohio.The planned installation of turbines in water that can freeze in the winter provides an extra engineering challenge, and necessitates the design and manufacturing of brand-new technologies.

Dennis Yurich created the exciting, funnily serious animation illustrating the city’s transition from an industrial past to a windustrious future, https://youtu.be/hTnmBH5m1f8.

Cool Cleveland helped to spread the word in its edition of Nov 8, 2006.

Jeff Moyer, composer and performer, wrote, sang and recorded “Wind on the Water”, to help spur public support and enthusiasm for this offshore wind project.

Sarah Taylor approached Ronn Richard, the President of the Cleveland Foundation, with the idea, and he, together with Bill Mason, then Prosecutor of Cuyahoga County, formed the Great Lakes Energy Development Task Force (GLEDTF).A series of studies on the potential for wind development, offshore from Cleveland, were funded and performed.

On February 8 2007, the Task Force issued a report recommending the establishment of a Lake Erie Wind Energy Center in Cleveland. 

Jeff Moyer, in 2007, performing “Wind on the Water” at Cleveland’s Ingenuity Fest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvNMrNa5MJ0#!

On August 24 2007, it was announced that a yearlong study, led by juwi international, would be undertaken to analyze the feasibility of establishing the Lake Erie Wind Energy Center, which would include the construction of a Wind Farm, a few miles off-shore from Cleveland. Juwi’s team included DLZ Ohio Inc., and Germanischer Lloyd Wind Energy (now merged with DNV-GL), https://www.dnvgl.com/to2030/technology/wind-energy-going-offshore.html.

Message from Paul Gipe received November 22, 2007.

The February 6, 2008 edition of Cool Cleveland reported that the efforts in Cuyahoga County had prompted a renewal of interest by the Canadians in developing their own offshore potential, along the north coasts of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.

A supportive message arrived from James Hansen on July 2, 2008.

Fairmount Minerals Ltd. added their voice, September 3, 2008.

Strong support announced by Jeff Baldassari, President, The Taylor Companies, July 14, 2009.

Message received from Van Jones, February 22, 2009. 

Sarah Taylor thanks all the Windustrious Champions – individuals, organizations, and businesses – who have added, and are adding, their names to the founding and continued promotion of this effort, June 3, 2009.

LEEDCo was launched by the Great Lakes Energy Task Force in late 2009, to promote regionally consistent development of offshore wind energy markets along the Northern Ohio coastline.

FULL AHEAD – from the Call & Post.   Click here to read a comparison of the engineering ingenuity needed today with that of 150 years ago.

CARDINAL FASTENER & SPECIALTY CO. expresses support. Cardinal Fastener is an innovative Cleveland manufacturing company, and has taken leadership in supplying the rapidly growing wind turbine component supply chain. Their increasing production is accompanied by those new green jobs. 

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE SWEDES!
The world’s first freshwater wind farm is installed on Lake Vanern. It was inaugurated on May 24, 2010.

A GREEN ECONOMY FOR ALL – from the CALL & POST
Van Jones, co-founder of “Green for All”, praises the Windustrious project as part of the effort to stimulate the creation of thousands of green jobs, nationwide.

THE GREAT LAKES WIND COLLABORATIVE was formed to focus on moving beyond regional borders, encouraging cooperation and shared responsibility between the states and provinces that border the Great Lakes, in developing offshore wind power.
This is a summary of their 2010 meeting, held 9/19 – 9/21 in Cleveland.

CITIZEN PARTNERSHIPS FOR OFFSHORE WIND was established in 2011 to help connect those communities and organizations along the East Coast, and around the Great Lakes, who are working to promote the development of offshore wind installations. Windustrious Cleveland was one of the Founding Members of CPOW.

LEEDCo announced in 2012 that Siemens would be targeted, rather than GE, for the procurement of its wind turbines for the Lake Erie installation offshore from Cleveland.  Read more

Tore Wizelius and Ake Frykberg, of ReWind Offshore, came to Cleveland on November 26, 2012 to share their experience of installing the world’s first freshwater wind farm!

LEEDCo has announced that its Icebreaker offshore wind project will incorporate a new foundation design, June 2, 2015.

Ohio News: The ground continues to swell, for Offshore Wind Power on the Great Lakes.  March 11, 2016

DOE Awards $40M Grant for Lake Erie Wind Project – A Victory for Windustrious Cleveland.  June 9, 2016

Cuyahoga County seeks to buy wind power indirectly from LEEDCo, planned solar array, July 22, 2016

A CLOSE-UP LOOK at Lake Erie’s wind-energy project, September 20, 2016

Middough, a nationally ranked 65-year-old locally-based engineering company, has been chosen to design a facility to move high-voltage power from the planned wind farm in Lake Erie to Cleveland Public Power’s system. Details here.  September 22, 2016.

Gov. Kasich Vetoes Continued Freeze on Ohio Clean Energy Mandates. December 27, 2016

Ohio Power Siting Board schedules local hearing for proposed wind farm in Lake Erie.  August 16, 2017

Final Environmental Assessment of the LeedCo project is published. 

Evolve, don’t stagnate: Moving Cleveland’s Icebreaker Wind project forward. 

Ohio just passed the worst energy bill of the 21st century.  July 27, 2019

Judge rejects extension to put energy bill on ballot, refers case to Ohio Supreme Court.  October 23, 2019

A Windustrious Champion Leading the Way.    July 30, 2020