State to pick up records in probe of Cape Vincent

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010

CAPE VINCENT — Staff from the state attorney general's office will be in town Friday to pick up records as part of an investigation into allegations of misconduct by some town officials in connection to wind power development.

The office ordered all documents from the Town Council and Planning Board related to wind development be turned over in an Aug. 13 letter. Town Supervisor Urban C. Hirschey said Tuesday that four boxes of materials have been collected, which comprise all of what the attorney general requested. He said interviews had not been scheduled yet with town officials about the material.

Mr. Hirschey will not call a second special meeting to vote on a moratorium on wind power development. A meeting Aug. 17 resulted in no change, because two councilmen were not present. The next council meeting is at 6 p.m. Sept. 9.


Link to Watertown Times article here

Watertown Daily Times | State to pick up records in probe of Cape Vincent

Watertown Daily Times State to pick up records in probe of Cape Vincent

State to pick up records in probe of Cape Vincent
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 25, 2010

CAPE VINCENT — Staff from the state attorney general's office will be in town Friday to pick up records as part of an investigation into allegations of misconduct by some town officials in connection to wind power development.

The office ordered all documents from the Town Council and Planning Board related to wind development be turned over in an Aug. 13 letter. Town Supervisor Urban C. Hirschey said Tuesday that four boxes of materials have been collected, which comprise all of what the attorney general requested. He said interviews had not been scheduled yet with town officials about the material.

Town Of Henderson~RE:Galloo~County official ‘disappointed’ with wind lawsuit decision

County official ‘disappointed’ with wind lawsuit decision
Posting Date: 08-25-2010

Carol Thompson
The Valley News Online

by Carol Thompson

A state Supreme Court judge has dismissed the Town of Henderson’s legal opposition to a proposed wind farm on Galloo Island in the town of Hounsfield.

Although an Oswego County legislator is disappointed, he is optimistic that the outcome won’t expedite the project.

Galloo ~ Ruling dismisses town's objection

Ruling dismisses town's objection

GALLOO WIND FARM: Judge says Henderson failed to show injury
By BRIAN KELLY
TIMES STAFF WRITER
FRIDAY, AUGUST 20, 2010

A state Supreme Court judge has dismissed the town of Henderson's legal opposition to a proposed wind farm on Galloo Island in the town of Hounsfield.

Henderson's Town Council brought an Article 78 proceeding in February asking that a judge, among other things, annul the town of Hounsfield Planning Board's site plan approval for Upstate NY Power Corp.'s Galloo Island Wind Farm.

Town accepts final impact statement

By Robert Brauchle Watertown Daily Times, N.Y.
Publication: Watertown Daily Times (New York)
Date: Thursday, August 19 2010

Aug. 19--CAPE VINCENT -- The town Planning Board unanimously accepted the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the St. Lawrence Wind Farm as being complete Wednesday night, a day after the Town Council here lacked the votes to suspend all wind power development.

During the roughly 20-minute meeting, board members asked for an explanation from the developer, Acciona Wind Energy USA, as to why the project was reduced from 53 turbines to 51 and whether that change affects the studies performed for the larger project.

Attorney General Investigates Wind Farm Dealings ~ ABC ~ 50 ~Video

Reported by: Holly Boname~ ABC 50 link--->here<---
Cape Vincent is usually a quiet town with little conflict, but that was not the case at Tuesday night’s emergency town board meeting.
The meeting was called by Supervisor Urban C. Hirschey in response to the office of Andrew Cuomo, New York State Attorney General, request of all documentation pertaining to the wind farm development project.

The town of Cape Vincent has been divided on the issue of wind turbines being developed on privately owned farm land.

Cape declines halt on wind

By Robert Brauchle Watertown Daily Times, N.Y.
Publication: Watertown Daily Times (New York)
Date: Wednesday, August 18 2010

Aug. 18--MEASURE NOT DEAD: Re-vote likely when all councilmen present

CAPE VINCENT -- A special meeting expected to temporarily halt wind power development in the town ended anticlimactically Tuesday, with the Town Council failing to pass a resolution.

The measure, presented by Supervisor Urban C. Hirschey, would have suspended all actions pertaining to wind development until a state Attorney General's office investigation is complete.

CAPE VINCENT WIND ECONOMICS COMMITTEE~INITIAL REPORT

The state Attorney General’s office has launched an investigation into possible misconduct by Cape Vincent officials

Breaking News News from The Post-Standard -

By Marie Morelli / The Post-Standard
August 16, 2010, 4:10PM
Syracuse, NY -- The state Attorney General’s office has launched an investigation into possible misconduct by Cape Vincent officials as they consider plans to build more than 100 wind turbines in their town. Opponents of the two proposed wind farms complained to Attorney General Andrew Cuomo that the planning process was tainted by conflicts of interest on the town... Full story

Cape Vincent Ny ~ Special board meeting ~ RE: Attourney General's investigation

Cape Vincent Supervisor Urban Hirschey calls a special board meeting

to address the New York State Attorney General's announcement that "certain" members of the Cape Vincent Town Board and Planning Board are under investigation for misconduct in the handling of wind development matters.

Special ~ Cape Vincent New York Town Board Meeting at Recreation Park on James Street.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010, 7:00 PM







ATTORNEY GENERAL: Misconduct alleged in wind development
By BRIAN KELLY
TIMES STAFF WRITER
SATURDAY
CAPE VINCENT — The state attorney generals office is investigating allegations of misconduct by "certain" town officials in connection with the development of wind farms.

State probing officials at Cape

State probing officials at Cape


ATTORNEY GENERAL: Misconduct alleged in wind development
By BRIAN KELLY
TIMES STAFF WRITER
SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2010

CAPE VINCENT — The state attorney general's office is investigating allegations of misconduct by "certain" town officials in connection with the development of wind farms.

John T. Milgrim, spokesman for the attorney general, confirmed that a letter was sent to the town and its attorney Friday afternoon informing them an investigation had been launched.

Continue reading via this link

Acciona submits its 'final' statement

WIND FARM PLANS: Developer ignores consultant's views on noise analysis

By NANCY MADSEN
TIMES STAFF WRITER
THURSDAY, AUGUST 12, 2010

CAPE VINCENT — The developer of St. Lawrence Wind Farm has eliminated two wind turbines for noise and wetland considerations, but it ignored the conclusions of the town's consultant on noise analysis in order to maintain a 51-turbine array.

Acciona Wind Energy USA submitted the possible Final Environmental Impact Statement to the town Planning Board on July 28. The board will meet at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Cape Vincent Recreation Park, 602 S. James St., to decide whether to accept the statement and deem it complete.

Acciona submits its 'final' statement

Acciona submits its 'final' statement

WIND FARM PLANS: Developer ignores consultant's views on noise analysis
By NANCY MADSEN
TIMES STAFF WRITER
THURSDAY, AUGUST 12, 2010


CAPE VINCENT — The developer of St. Lawrence Wind Farm has eliminated two wind turbines for noise and wetland considerations, but it ignored the conclusions of the town's consultant on noise analysis in order to maintain a 51-turbine array.

Acciona Wind Energy USA submitted the possible Final Environmental Impact Statement to the town Planning Board on July 28. The board will meet at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Cape Vincent Recreation Park, 602 S. James St., to decide whether to accept the statement and deem it complete.

     

Click title link to read WDT comments

NCPR ~ Save the River ~ calls For Three Year Wind Development Moratorium

Save the River, an environmental group based in Clayton, NY, wants a three-year delay in development of more wind power along the St. Lawrence River.

A spokesperson for the group says there are proposals for some 400 wind turbines in the Thousand Island region. Preliminary numbers from a study at an 86-turbine wind farm on Wolfe Island, a Canadian island near Kingston, Ontario, show higher than usual mortality among birds and bats. Martha Foley has more.

<~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~> <~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~> Wolfe Island bird kills raise wind power concerns 07/07/10 A recent study of bird and bat mortality at Wolfe Island’s 82-turbine wind farm is raising concerns among environmentalists. Wolfe Island is Canadian territory, located where Lake Ontario empties into the St. Lawrence River. The report found 600 birds and more than a thousand bats were killed by the windmill blades in a six month period. Nature Canada called the numbers “shockingly high.” Ornithologist Bill Evans says the real question is which species of birds died. Evans directs Old Bird, Inc. in Ithaca and has consulted for both wind power companies and environmental groups. He told David Sommerstein Wolfe Island is a designated important bird area, so ornithologists predicted high fatalities. Evans says the number of hawks, owls, and other raptors was the most alarming.     Video of Save The River statement

JCIDA: All jurisdictions must agree to PILOTs

Watertown Daily Times, N.Y.

By Nancy Madsen
Wednesday, August 4 2010

Aug. 04--Jefferson County could see repeats of the rancor that accompanied the Galloo Island Wind Farm payment-in-lieu-of-taxes approval at the county Legislature after changes made Tuesday morning.

A payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for any wind power project will need approval from all of the involved taxing jurisdictions, agreed members of the governance committee of the Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency.


To see more of the Watertown Daily Times, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/ .

Possible Location of Galloo Island Transmission Lines

Possible location of Galloo Island Transmission lines

INPUT SOUGHT ON LINE ROUTES~GALLOO ISLAND WIND PROJECT

By NANCY MADSEN
TIMES STAFF WRITER
FRIDAY, JULY 30, 2010
Link here to large map

Galloo Island Wind Farm's developer is asking for public comment again, this time on four possible routes for a transmission line.

Upstate NY Power Corp. on Monday will begin a series of public information meetings in Jefferson and Oswego counties about the routes. Information with maps of the routes was sent to towns and villages where the line may run and is available on the developer's website.

PILOT plan

The Jefferson County Industrial Agency finally has held some public discussions as they attempt to do what the county Legislature told them to do almost a year ago. JCIDA members are talking about changes to the uniform tax exempt policy adopted in 2004.

JCIDA ignored the county's direction to produce a uniform policy for wind power developments in the county and instead negotiated a special deal for the Galloo Island project, which cost county taxpayers substantial lost property tax revenues and left unsaid just exactly what part of the county would host the power line serving the project. 

Continue...Watertown Times

GALLOO ISLAND PSC~RULING ON REVISED SCHEDULE

STATE OF NEW YORK
PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
Article VII Proceeding

CASE 09-T-0049 - Application of Upstate NY Power Corp. for a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need for a 50.6 mile 230kV Transmission Facility From Galloo Island in the Town of Hounsfield, Jefferson County, to the Fitzpatrick-Edic Substation in the Town of Mexico, Oswego County.
(Issued July 22, 2010)
RULING ON REVISED SCHEDULE
KEVIN J. CASUTTO, Administrative Law Judge:
A telephone conference was convened on July 14, 2010, with the Applicant, Department of Public Service (DPS) Staff, and Ms. Roberta French to discuss status of the Applicant’s revised alternatives analysis and further scheduling. The Applicant provided a summary of the telephone conference in its letter dated July 16, 2010, including its request to postpone the September 15, 2010 procedural conference to a status conference on October 13, 2010. In sum, the Applicant explained that completion of the revised alternatives analysis is taking more time than initially anticipated (see Applicant’s July 16th letter for further background). By October 13, the Applicant expects to circulate to the active parties a “tier two” map identifying the location of alternative transmission line routes intended for more detailed consideration in subsequent evidentiary hearings. However, although the Applicant intends to identify the tier two routes by October 13, Applicant’s tier two analysis will not be completed by that date.
Consequently, a telephone conference with the active parties will be held on October 13, 2010 at 2:00 p.m., during which the Applicant will provide a status report on its alternatives analysis and its outreach efforts with affected towns. During the October 13 telephone conference, we will discuss further scheduling, including a date by which the
CASE 09-T-0049
-2-
Applicant will file its tier two analysis, and a schedule for a procedural conference and public statement hearings.
Therefore, the procedural conference tentatively planned for September 15, 2010 is canceled. Instead, a telephone conference will be held at 2:00 p.m. on October 13, 2010. Instructions for participation in the October 13 telephone conference will be circulated to the active parties at a future date.
(SIGNED) KEVIN J. CASUTTO

Edsall's Questionable Ethics ~ Letter to the Editor ~ WDT

Cape official's conduct requires explanation
Watertown Daily Times~ editorial Section~
SATURDAY, JULY 17, 2010
The actions of the town of Cape Vincent Planning Board Chairman Richard Edsall should be a concern to everyone in Jefferson County. While he and his family hold wind contracts that could yield them over $54,000, he has voted on important wind issues.

He has also made himself a strong advocate of wind development in Cape Vincent, while declining to request an opinion from the Jefferson County Board of Ethics as to whether he should be voting on or participating in wind-related issues.

Mr. Edsall has stated repeatedly that Cape Vincent needs a wind law and yet
on June 14, 2006, he wrote the town board to let them know that the Planning Board recommends the town board abandon the wind law process. This raises the question as to whether he wants a law or not. Perhaps he feels that, as an advocate of wind power, he can negotiate a project application through the site plan review process that will be friendlier to his personal financial interests.

He was also instrumental in hiring the law firm Whitman Osterman & Hanna of Albany . Their website explains how they have worked for wind developers in the past. The developer-friendly law firm has done nothing to protect the citizens of Cape Vincent and has done everything to promote the developers' agenda.
In June, I was present at a Planning Board meeting. After the regular meeting was finished, the chairman said there will not be another meeting until July. Right after that, to my surprise, I became aware of another meeting that was not announced to the public.

It was in a back room in the town office building. Present at this meeting were four Planning Board members, as well as two town board members, the Planning Board chairman's wife and the zoning officer.

Why would Mr. Edsall hold a private meeting while the town is in a controversy over wind development? He and his family are some of the largest recipients of wind lease money. I feel a public explanation would be in order to set the record straight.

John Byrne

Cape Vincent

Additional link~ Aubertine letter to Cape Vincent ~Town Board RE: conflicted members voting