More than three dozen Hamlin residents are suing the town over a new law regulating the development of wind farms.
The Hamlin Preservation Group and 39 town residents filed a lawsuit Tuesday in state Supreme Court against the law, claiming it will allow electricity-generating wind turbines that will ruin Hamlin's rural nature and environment.
The Hamlin Town Board unanimously approved the law at a contentious meeting April 24. One board member abstained because he had signed a lease agreement with a wind energy firm.
The law, which was the first passed by a town in Monroe County, allows wind towers up to 400 feet high in parts of town that are zoned residential/very-low density. Turbines may be placed within 600 feet of property lines and 1,200 feet of residences.
Attorney Arthur J. Giacalone, who represents the Hamlin Preservation Group, said about 70 percent of the town is zoned residential/very-low density, including fruit orchards near Lake Ontario.
He said the town board ignored recommendations of its Wind Tower Committee — which included four of the 39 residents now suing the town — to establish 1,500-foot setbacks from roads and property lines and 2,640-foot setbacks from homes.
The town, he said, didn't conduct an environmental review required by state law and ignored the town's comprehensive plan.
"Hamlin's Town Board has the power to exclude industrial-scale wind farms from this lakeside community, or to mandate minimum setback requirements and noise standards that would protect its residents' health and preserve property values and the town's rural character," said Giacalone, of East Aurora, Erie County.
"It chose, instead, to enact weak and ineffective standards that will facilitate wind farm development at the expense of nearby homeowners and the town's scenic resources."
Town Supervisor Dennis Roach didn't return a call requesting his comment.
At the April 24 meeting, he said be believes the law is "balanced, reasonable and defensible."
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