ORONO, Minn. - A Twin Cities man who says he can power a third of his house with a wind turbine generator is leaving up his high-tech lawn ornament despite the city of Orona telling him to take it down.
Jay Nygard's installed the turbine at the rear and side of his home, but since homes are so close together, neighbors balked the energy-saving measure.
"The reason why it bothers me is he's not supposed to have it and he does it anyways," said neighbor Sheila Langhans.
The City of Orono went to court to force Nygard to remove it and the city won. So, earlier this month, Nygard took the turbine down, but mounted it on his front lawn while he appeals the court's decision.
"You know what? If the city's going to be ornery enough to say, 'You can't go green in our community,' then I guess it's just going to be yard art for me," Nygard said.
He said he is pursuing this project despite all the legal costs because he says he believes in going green and he wants to make a point.
In the meantime, Nygard has been ordered to pay the city's court costs as well as his own.
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