Chilmark selectmen will hire an engineering consultant to review two wind turbine projects planned for working farms on South Road.

The town selectmen voted to hire the consultant at their meeting Tuesday night after discussion about an appeal by neighbors of building permits issued recently for the Allen Farm and Grey Barn to put up wind turbines.

The Chilmark zoning board of appeals will hold a public hearing on the appeal on Jan. 19.

Five years ago Mitchell Posin and Clarissa Allen had a vision: of sheep grazing under a windmill that powered their Chilmark farm. It was a vision of a working farm functioning with clean energy, from the grass the sheep ate to the compost tea they helped produce to the wind that spun the turbine.

On Monday morning that vision became reality when a 149-foot turbine was installed at the farm, the largest turbine to date on the Island.

Once it is fully operational, the windmill will produce 125,000 kilowatt hours per year.