10/20/06
Genesee Country Express
Mr. Miller,
From the outset the Cohocton Wind Watch web site has listed our purpose and mission statement.
Citizens, Residents and Neighbors concerned about ill conceived wind turbine projects in the Town of Cohocton and adjacent townships in Western New York.
Cohocton Wind Watch is a community citizen organization dedicated to preserve the public safety, property values, economic viability, environmental integrity and quality of life in Cohocton, NY and in surrounding townships. Neighbors committed to public service in order to achieve a reasonable vision for a Finger Lakes region worthy of future generations.
As you will read above the operative phrase is ill-conceived wind turbine projects. Many CWW members define industrial 400’ + size units as unsuited for Cohocton and our Finger Lakes Region. This has been and still is the consistent position of Cohocton Wind Watch.
The facts are that UPC has submitted a DEIS for their Cohocton Phrase I and has proposed an additional Phrase II project. As you are aware the original UPC lease agreements were based upon 1.5 MW turbines. The latest status for both UPC projects are now up to 2.5 MW and the total capacity for generation has increased from 84 and 34 to 90 and 40 + or - MW's.
Cohocton Wind Watch emphatically opposes the UPC proposal.
As you are also aware, Empire State Wind Energy has announced publicly that any proposed project that they might develop can consist of smaller sized turbines both in height, MW’s and numbers. Also Empire has indicated that their site locations could be developed within an industrial zone and would pay full industrial rate property tax.
Since Empire has not yet submitted a site specific public plan, it would be imprudent and counterproductive to simply oppose a non proposed project. When specific details are presented for an Empire project, Cohocton Wind Watch will analyze the merits of that project. CWW will base its judgment on any future developer proposal based upon the same public safety standards and environmental considerations that have been used in opposing the UPC projects.
Cohocton Wind Watch is not motivated by the promise of a developer’s money offer. However, the promise of UPC payments to leaseholders is the primary drive for support of their program from landholders and YES advocates. The fact that the SCIDA PILOT amount to be paid by UPC to municipality governments is not being released, indicates that such payments will be much lower than full industrial tax rates. Feedback from the general Cohocton public has overwhelming demonstrated their preference for any developer to pay property tax rates based upon the entire assessed value of the project.
Since the Cohocton Town Board has scheduled a Public Hearing on Windmill Local Law #2, CWW is gearing up to challenge this over friendly to the developer legislation. Cohocton Wind Watch favors a moratorium on the passage of any industrial wind turbine zoning that is inconsistent with the Cohocton Comprehensive Plan.
CWW is not supporting, endorsing or opposing an Empire proposal because one is not yet publicly presented. Several of the announced intentions from Empire are a distinct improvement from the UPC method. No doubt all Cohocton property owners would benefit from a reduced tax rate if a developer would pay their full share on an industrial project vs. a PILOT amount. The correct question is not why CWW is opposing Empire’s non disclosed project, but why are the Town of Cohocton and YES advocates not demanding that UPC pay full industrial tax rates on their ever expanding industrial project?
Cohocton Wind Watch would be the first to rejoice if no project was developed in Cohocton, Prattsburgh and in any NYS location where the consistent wind velocity has not been empirically substantiated. However, CWW does not legislate local laws and the prospects that some or many wind developments may come to our township is plausible.
Based upon the prospects that industrial wind turbines may be approved, it is natural that affective individuals will seek to diminish the negative and adverse consequences to their own circumstance. Conceptually the outline presented from Empire may appeal to distressed property owners who understand the severe impact of the UPC project. It might even be possible that UPC could revise their “ill conceived wind turbine projects” to confirm with the protective modifications that Empire has announced. Protective site locations, insuring real health, safety, property and public road setbacks, size and number of units have always been the core issues. WLL #2 ignore all these risks.
Mr. Miller you are missing the opportunity to cover the major news significance in the Cohocton wind saga. If Empire proposed the same destructive industrial turbine project that UPC has already submitted, CWW would use every means to oppose that development. You are basing your questions on an assumption that is not proven and may well be false. The essential issue is why are you not asking UPC and YES (especially if YES champions the “so called” clean alternative energy generation), the reasons they are not endorsing the community based concepts that Empire has publicized and why doesn’t UPC revise their projects to include and accept meaningful public safety modifications?
Cohocton Wind Watch has remained consistent, credible and correct. Maybe now is the time to do some serious investigative reporting into the conflict of interests, collusion and corruption that exists among officials of the Town of Cohocton and the UPC developers.
Also read - Take Time and Compare by Gary & Pat Struck
http://batr.net/cohoctonwindwatch/2006/10/take-time-and-compare.html
You are authorized to publish this response in the Genesee County Express ONLY if you print the entire letter, as written.
CWW
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