Should the Morro Bay stacks come down? Public Zoom forum tackles question tonight
A forum on the pending possible removal of the Morro Bay Power Plant smoke stacks will be held Wednesday (Sept. 8) via Zoom.
The city of Morro Bay is hosting the community discussion between 6 and 7:30 p.m.
The community is encouraged to attend and provide input, Morro Bay Councilmember Dawn Addis said in a news release.
Vistra, the company that owns the Morro Bay Power Plant and stacks, is planning to redevelop their property.
The Morro Bay City Council approved a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Vistra Corp. on June 9, requiring the Texas-based energy company to remove the stacks and asbestos-containing turbine building by 2028 — or pay a $3 million penalty to the city.
The City Council must decide by December 2022 whether it wants to keep the three stacks that loom over the city.
The plant opened in the 1950s, and the 450-foot-tall stacks have become part of the city’s culture and skyline, which some associate with the city’s identity. But proponents of removing them cite the potential for decay and challenges with safe upkeep in future years.
Under the MOU, the council must make that decision after holding a “robust community conversation” about the stacks’ removal, a previous city news release said.
“The community can ask questions and share ideas about what should happen with the stacks,” Addis wrote in the latest release.
Addis said: “This is a momentous decision. It’s critical that people from across Morro Bay, and the Central Coast, have the opportunity to join this important conversation.”
Addis added: “The stacks hold sentimental significance for some people, and for others they represent an industry that it’s time to move away from. We have an opportunity to decide together if they will stay up or come down. There really has never been a decision of this magnitude in front of the community before. It’s a once in a life-time opportunity.”
Forum presenters will include representatives from Vistra, the Department of Toxic Substances Control, the San Luis Obispo County Air Pollution Control District, as well as Morro Bay city staff.
Mayor John Heading and Addis, the two members of the Morro Bay Power Plant subcommittee, will provide opening and closing remarks.
More information about the event can be found on Morro Bay’s website under “Hot Topics” at morro-bay.ca.us.
Click this link to watch the meeting via Zoom.
This story was originally published September 8, 2021 at 11:58 AM.
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