If you live in the northern part of town, you can't miss Portsmouth's newest landmark, the sleek white wind turbine behind the high school. But if you've been watching for the blades to start spinning, you'll need to be patient for just a little while longer.

In an e-mail yesterday, Economic Development Committee (EDC) Chair Rich Talipsky said that the pre-commissioning checkout of the turbine is proceeding slower than expected.

"This is only the second installation of this type wind turbine in the US and the manufacturer is exercising a high degree of scrutiny on their work to ensure quality," said Talipsky. "The checks, that were estimated to take 1-2 weeks to complete [...] are going to take about the full two weeks original advertised. That places the estimated date of power operations at about next Wednesday March 18."

As Mrs. Lovett says, "Soon will come, soon will last. Wait."