November 28, 2018
New York

CPF Advisory Board to explore alternative energy plan

By Julie Lane | Shelter Island Reporter | 11/27/18 | shelterislandreporter.timesreview.com

The Community Preservation Fund (CPF) Advisory Board has agreed to meet with representatives of Renewable Energy Long Island to discuss creating solar fields and wind energy sites.

Committee Chairman Gordon Gooding was skeptical about whether CPF money could be used for those purposes. The CPF is funded by a 2 percent tax that buyers pay when purchasing East End properties and is used to purchase open space for preservation and to fund water protection programs.

But Mr. Gooding agreed to schedule an upcoming meeting with Renewable Energy Long Island representatives to listen to their presentation.

CPF Advisory Board member Kathleen Girard asked at the group’s November 19 meeting if a site on Shelter Island could be used for a solar farm. Councilman Albert Dickson said the Town Board has discussed creating a solar energy site at the Recycling Center, but wasn’t sure of its status.

Public Works Commissioner Jay Card Jr. said that there are four acres of land at the Recycling Center that could accommodate a solar field.

Mr. Card noted there had been an attempt through the Green Options Committee to partner with the Long Island Power Authority on discussing solar infrastructure, but no arrangement was made. He suggested that the town hire a consultant if it wants to invest in solar power because there are “a lot of moving pieces” that need to be tracked to be successful.

In other business: Mr. Gooding said he has spent time trying to close on the Scudder property, a 1-acre site at 46 Congdon Road. The land belongs to Peter and Elizabeth Scudder and has a purchase price of $800,000, which former Supervisor Jim Dougherty said was “a bargain sale price.”

Plans call for the site to be kept as open space. But delays have resulted and the town is still waiting to close, with some debate over property taxes.

Future acquisitions have to be more carefully investigated to ensure there won’t be such long delays in closing, Mr. Gooding said. The Scudder property “has been a learning experience,” he added.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2018/11/28/cpf-advisory-board-to-explore-alternative-energy-plan/