4 state legislators say project jeopardizes Air Reserve Station

BARKER – Lighthouse Wind, LLC, announced today the company has signed New York’s updated code of conduct.

The company in recent months has been criticized by members of Save Ontario Shores, a citizens’ group opposed to the large-scale wind turbine project, for not signing the code of conduct.

Lighthouse Wind is an Apex Clean Energy subsidiary. Lighthouse Wind contacted the Office of the Attorney General last year in regard to the code, the company said today.

After review of the existing code and in light of significant permitting changes, the attorney general’s office revised the code. After receipt of the updated code, Lighthouse Wind said it immediately engaged in an ongoing dialogue with the attorney general’s office regarding ministerial corrections and clarifications to the new 2016 New York State Code of Conduct for Wind Farm Development.

“The attorney general’s office provided Lighthouse Wind, along with other wind developers in New York, with the updated Code of Conduct agreement to review in February,” said Mark Goodwin, president and chief operating officer of Apex. “After careful review and discussions with the attorney general’s office, Lighthouse Wind is pleased to sign the Code of Conduct. We look forward to exercising our due diligence and providing all necessary information as requested. We are confident that the tasks that we have performed to date make us well prepared for compliance.”

Apex is looking to build up to 71 wind turbines in Yates and Somerset as part of Lighthouse Wind. The turbines could peak at 620 feet high from the top of the turbine blades.

A local delegation of state legislators has stepped up pressure on the Public Service Commission, saying in a letter last month to PSC Secretary Kathleen Burgess the tall turbines raise serious concerns.

State Sen. Robert Ortt (62nd District), Sen. Michael Ranzehofer (61st District), Assemblywoman Jane Corwin (144th District) and Assemblywoman Angela Wozniak (143rd District) sent a joint letter to Burgess, expressing their concerns regarding the proposed industrial wind turbine project for Niagara and Orleans counties.

The legislators worry the turbines could have a negative impact on the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station military operating area.

“We have serious concerns that these wind turbines will affect airspace around the base and make it less likely to be considered for future missions,” the legislators wrote in a joint letter. “In 1995, the base was reviewed for closure during a Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC). It was again reviewed for closure in a 2005 BRAC, and again in 2012 during the US Air Force Structure Adjustment. With everpresent BRAC and restructuring threats to the base, we cannot risk these wind turbines jeopardizing the future of the Base and all those who are supported by it.

“Encroachment is one of the key factors the military uses when determining the future of a base and NFARS currently ranks favorably in that area,” they wrote. “We cannot allow wind turbines to interfere with radar or flights and thereby jeopardize the future of the base.”

Press Release, State Sen. Robert Ortt

YATES – State Sen. Rob Ortt (R – North Tonawanda) thanked Gov. Andrew Cuomo for responding to a pressing request to appoint a representative from Orleans County to the Lighthouse Wind LLC Siting Board.

The Governor’s Appointments Office has announced the appointment of Russell Martino, a Town of Yates resident and former Yates town supervisor.

The seven-member Siting Board will review the final application by Apex Clean Energy in its project proposal to construct up to 70 wind turbines in the towns of Yates and Somerset. The turbines would be as tall as 600 feet.

“I commend Governor Como for fulfilling the role that Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie failed to follow through on,” said Sen. Ortt. “Russ was a wise decision for this appointment. When Russ was the town supervisor, he was instrumental in drawing up the wind ordinance laws in 2008. He is well-versed in this issue. I have no doubt he will honorably voice the serious concerns raised by property owners, businesses, farmers and local representatives.”

Russ Martino said, “I’ve lived in the Town of Yates for 50 years now and am very invested and involved in my community. I’ve seen what this issue is doing to our community; residents don’t feel they’re being heard. I hope to be the voice of my community members who don’t want this project to move forward in our town.”

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R – Batavia) said, “I would like to congratulate Russell Martino on his appointment as an ad hoc member of the board of the Yates Wind Project. I am pleased to see that Orleans County will be fairly represented in this process and that the board is allowing ordinary citizens to voice concerns about local projects. As I’ve said before, this is a local project that would greatly impact the Yates community and I fully support the decision to oppose the APEX Clean Energy Lighthouse, LLC. Local citizens know what is best for their community and this appointment is a great example of transparent and inclusive government.”

State Senate Majority leader John Flanagan and State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie were required to appoint a siting board member from nominations approved by host municipalities of where the project is being proposed. Senator Flanagan chose his representative from the Town of Somerset in Niagara County.

Assemblyman Heastie, however, failed to meet his obligation, and the responsibility to select a board member fell on the governor.

Sen. Ortt wrote a letter to Governor Cuomo, immediately following Assemblyman Heastie’s shortcomings. In the letter sent in January, Senator Ortt advocated for greater local involvement by moving siting decisions away from politicians and bureaucrats in Albany and giving back to local officials.

Apex Clean Energy has not formally submitted an application for the project.

Governor names Yates resident to board that will review ‘Lighthouse Wind’

File photo by Tom Rivers – Russ Martino, pictured here on Feb. 13, 2015 during the final meeting of the Orleans County Health Facilities Corporation, has been named to a siting board for the proposed Lighthouse Wind project. Martino served as chairman of the Health Facilities Corporation, which was created to facilitate the sale of the former county-owned nursing home.

YATES – Gov. Andrew Cuomo has stepped in to appoint a Yates resident to fill a spot on a siting board for the proposed Lighthouse Wind project.

The seven-member board includes leaders from five state agencies. It also has two spots for local residents. Cuomo on Tuesday named Russ Martino, a former Yates town supervisor and retired Lyndonville elementary principal, to the board.

That follows a couple months of pressure from local and state officials for Yates to have a voice on the board. Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie didn’t appoint someone to the board.

John Flanagan, the State Senate majority leader, appointed Cathi Orr of Somerset to the board. Orr has been a vocal critic of the project, which could include up to 71 turbines in Somerset and Yates.

Apex Clean Energy is working on the application. Many of the documents for the project are available on the state Public Service Commission website. Click here to see the PSC website.

The Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment hasn’t convened. It is part of the new Article 10 process that has been criticized for shifting the final say on the project from local control to a board where the majority of the votes are state officials.

The five state representatives include the chairman of the Department of Public Service, commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation, commissioner of the Department of Health, chairman of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and the commissioner of Economic Development.

After Heastie didn’t act on a local appointment, State Assemblyman Steve Hawley and county officials both appealed to the governor’s office to fill the spot with a Yates resident.

“I am pleased to see that Orleans County will be fairly represented in this process and that the board is allowing ordinary citizens to voice concerns about local projects,” Hawley said. “As I’ve said before, this is a local project that would greatly impact the Yates community and I fully support the decision to oppose the APEX Clean Energy Lighthouse, LLC. Local citizens know what is best for their community and this appointment is a great example of transparent and inclusive government.”

Former Yates Town Supervisor John Belson and Orleans County Legislature Chairman David Callard nominated four Yates residents for the board, including Martino, Cynthia Hellert, Glenn Maid and Jeffrey Oakes.

“I am gratified you have accepted this appointment and I am confident you will serve the people of New York State with dedication and distinction,” Cuomo said in a letter to Martino on March 1.

The Siting Board wouldn’t be officially convened until Apex submits a final application for the project in Yates and Somerset. Company officials say they are working to submit that application this summer.

Press Release, Lyndonville Central School

LYNDONVILLE – Mental health issues are gaining national attention and Lyndonville Central School District is teaming up with Orleans County Mental Health to provide services to the students.

“Our district works to assure resources are available to our students and this satellite mental health office helps to achieve that,” said Superintendent Jason Smith. “Allowing our students to have appropriate support provides them an opportunity for further success in the classroom.”

Services are available to Lyndonville students on a referral basis two days a week. Students are referred to the county mental health counselor by the district and parent/guardian permission is then obtained. The student then goes through an initial assessment with the counselor and regular appointments are planned thereafter.

This satellite office provides county mental health services in Lyndonville, in addition to the services offered at the county location in Albion.

“We are excited by the opportunity to bring community-based services to youth in their natural environment,” said Mark O’Brien, director of mental health and community services at Orleans County Department of Mental Health.

YATES – The Town Board has formed a task force to review and amend the local law for wind energy facilities, which was passed in 2008.

The Town Board named the task force last Thursday. Town Supervisor Jim Simon said the task force will look at setbacks, noise, property value guarantees and other issues with wind turbines.

The town approved its local law for wind energy facilities in 2008, after about two years of work from the town on the local law. Simon expects the update of the local law could be complete in six weeks to two months. The town will review how Somerset has proposed to change its local law for turbines.

“We don’t have to reinvent the wheel,” he said today.

Simon set March 7 as a deadline for the task force to propose changes in the local law to the Town Board.

The updated law will be subject to review by the Orleans County Planning Board and residents in a hearing.

John Riggi, a newly elected Yates Town Board member, was part of Somerset’s committee to update its wind energy law. Riggi served in the role as president of Save Ontario Shores, a citizens group opposed to the turbine. He and Simon will both serve on the Yates task force for the turbine law.

Other members include Paul Chatfield, Town Engineer; Gary Daum, Zoning Board chairman and County Planning Board member; Keith McKinney, Zoning Board member; Russ Martino, former town supervisor who oversaw 2008 Wind Law development; and at-large resident members, Carol Neal, Cindy Hellert and Andrew Cousins.

“Let’s look at it with a fresh set of eyes,” Simon said about the local law.

Hodgson Russ LLP of Buffalo will act as legal adviser to the task force. Dan Spitzer, an attorney from Hodgson Russ, advised the town a decade ago in developing its wind turbine law and will continue as an advisor, Simon said.

Apex Clean Energy has proposed up to 71 wind turbines in Yates and Somerset, with about two-thirds of the structures, peaking at 620 feet high, expected in Somerset. The company hasn’t submitted a formal application for the project.

In November, it submitted a preliminary scoping statement. More than 300 respondents with 1,000 comments were submitted to the NY Public Service Commission. Apex had a Feb. 11 deadline to respond to the comments but sought an extension until Feb. 29. The PSC agreed to the additional time.

James Muscato, Apex attorney, told the PSC in a letter that the company will give responses that are “meaningful and robust, and will demonstrate to the parties that their comments have been heard and considered.”

A seven-member Siting Board will review the final application by Apex. That board include five agency leaders for the state, and two residents from the project area. State Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan and State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie were both to appoint a member from the local project area based on nominations from local elected officials.

Randy Atwater was previously reported to be Flanagan’s choice. But Atwater, as president of the Barker Board of Education, is an elected official, and elected representatives are now viewed as ineligible to serve on the committee.

Flanagan instead on Feb. 4 appointed Cathi Orr, a vocal critic of the project, to serve on the Siting Board. She used to live in Orangeville in Wyoming County but moved to Somerset after wind turbines were constructed in Orangeville.

“She is well-read on this issue,” Simon said. “She knows her stuff.”

Heastie didn’t name a local representative for the Siting Board. The issue has been left with Gov. Cuomo, and Simon said the governor is expected to name a resident from Yates soon.

State Assemblyman Steve Hawley and State Sen. Robert Ortt sent joint letter on Feb. 3 asking Audrey Zibelman, commissioner of the New York State Public Service Commission, to work on the appointment of a Yates resident to the board.

The two state legislators noted Somerset had a representative from that town and Yates should also have a voice in the process.

“We firmly believe that equal representation from both Counties as enumerated in Article 10 should be appointed from Orleans County,” they said in a Feb. 3 letter.

Yates and Orleans County officials have submitted the names of four people to be considered for the board: Russ Martino, Jeff Oakes, Cindy Hellert and Glenn Maid.

LYNDONVILLE – “Need to Know,” a public affairs program produced by WXXI in Rochester, aired a segment on Lyndonville’s character education program on Feb. 4.

Jason Smith, the district superintendent, is pleased with the attention for the program, We R 3C. The segment on Need to Know includes interviews with teachers and students at Lyndonville.

The core of the We R 3C curriculum promotes values, respect, kindness and compassion and recognizes the definitive responsibility of the individual to the well-being of the community and reciprocally, the community’s responsibility to the well-being of the individual.

To see the feature on Lyndonville, click here for a link to the show. Lyndonville starts at the 23:50 mark.

YATES – The president of the citizens group opposed to the wind turbine project proposed in Yates and Somerset has written Gov. Cuomo a letter, asking him to fill the seat on a Siting Board for the “Lighthouse Wind” project.

There are supposed to be two local representatives and five leaders of state agencies on the “New York State Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment.” That board will review the proposed project that includes up to 71 turbines that could peak at 620-feet high in the two towns.

One local representative has been named to the board. Randy Atwater, president of the Barker Board of Education, was appointed by John Flanagan, majority leader of the State Senate.

Carl Heastie, speaker of the State Assembly, also could have named a local representative but he didn’t act on the matter.

Now Pamela Atwater, president of Save Ontario Shores and wife of Randy Atwater, is pressing Gov. Cuomo to fill the other local seat.

“The Article 10 Board, even with two local appointees, is already heavily skewed against local government and community Home Rule,” Atwater wrote to Cuomo. “To enter the next phase of the siting process with one local representative position unfilled would be unfair, a further insult to the concept of Home Rule and would send a signal that the entire Article 10 process is preconfigured to ignore legitimate local and regional concerns.”

The board includes five leaders of state agencies – chairman of the Department of Public Service, commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation, commissioner of the Department of Health, chairman of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and the commissioner of Economic Development.

The loss of “home rule” for the project has been denounced by many local municipal boards and elected officials, including the town boards in Yates and Somerset; the Erie, Niagara and Orleans county legislatures; and Congressman Chris Collins, State Sen. Robert Ortt and State Assemblyman Steve Hawley.

Surveys in Yates and Somerset have also showed strong opposition by residents to the project.

Apex Clean Energy has submitted a preliminary scoping statement and has until Feb. 11 to respond to “several hundred” comments on the PSS. After those responses, Apex officials said they look forward to more formal conversations about the project with the community and state agencies, said Taylor Quarles, development manager for Apex’s proposed Lighthouse Wind project.

LYNDONVILLE – The Lyndonville School District and the We R 3C character education program will be featured on WXXI television at 8 p.m. on Thursday.

The “Need to Know” program, hosted by Helene Biandudi Hofer, will present We R 3C’s approach to character education. Teachers and students from the Lyndonville were interviewed in November. The piece will include segments of a We R 3C lesson.

We R 3C, Inc. presents a holistic approach to character education and development as it relates to “pro-social behavior” and bullying. The foundation of organization’s work mirrors Jean Piaget’s stages of Cognitive Development and Lawrence Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development.

Specifically, the focus is on the movement from the Egocentric Stage, whereby individuals place a higher value on their own wants and needs then they do on the wants and needs of others, to the Concrete Operational Development Stage, which includes the elimination of egocentrism and allows an individual to understand another person’s perspective whether they are in agreement or not.

The core of the We R 3C curriculum promotes values, respect, kindness and compassion and recognizes the definitive responsibility of the individual to the well-being of the community and reciprocally, the community’s responsibility to the well-being of the individual.

“We R 3C is a groundbreaking way to help our students develop good habits and reinforce the strong character traits that the Lyndonville community is known for,” said Lyndonville Superintendent Jason Smith.

For more information about We R 3C, click here. For more on WXXI, click here.