October 25, 2019
Letters, New York

Wind issues at center of Hopkinton political races

Opinion: Wind issues at center of Hopkinton political races, says Dickinson Center resident | North Country Now | October 23, 2019 | northcountrynow.com

The wind issue is not “dead” in Hopkinton. The developer, Avangrid/Atlantic Wind/Iberdrola, is still paying thousands on leases that company spokesman Paul Copleman stated would be cancelled at the end of the year in a January 2018 interview. And, the company has not withdrawn the project from the NYISO grid operator’s queue [https://www.nyiso.com/interconnections].

So, why would a company keep paying on leases if the entire project was “dead?” I have seen a copy of the Wind Option and Wind Energy Lease Agreement specifically for the proposed North Ridge Wind Project, and on page 23 it clearly states that the company has the right to terminate with thirty days’ written notice to the landowner.

At the October 15th Q & A, Vickie French and Deborah Rust stated they did not want to revisit the proposed project and would not bring it back in front of the Board, if they were elected. However, if the company brings the project back through the Article 10 process, it will come before the Board. Would French and Rust propose changing the current protective law to accommodate the 600’+ industrial wind turbines requested by Avangrid? Remember, neither French nor Rust live inside the wind overlay zone.

Rust has known for months that the Town Board planned to draft an updated solar law and has not publicly brought any research to the table. At the Q & A she told us, “I have no clue. I don’t pretend to know, and I don’t think anybody in this room knows everything about solar.” It was insulting to members of the public who do contribute researched information when she insinuated information was coming from Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Her solution was, “We need to ask someone who works with solar on a daily basis what actually it’s all about.” Who would she suggest? The Solar Division of her former employer Avangrid?

At the Q & A, Vickie French told us how well she knew her job, after 36 years as town clerk. How then, on three different occasions, did French make the same mistake by failing to attach the Wind Overlay Zone Map to the Local Wind Law as legally required? That had consequences. The November 2011 omission created a situation that would allow industrial wind turbines anywhere in the town. The March 2018 omission caused a significant legal delay and confusion in the dates for public input and the board’s final vote on the Local Wind Law.

The April 2018 omission was a repeat of the 2011 error and the Wind Overlay Zone Map was not included with the Local Wind Law documents she prepared for the town attorney to review and then legally file with the state. Had this omission not been caught, Hopkinton would have been left without any wind overlay zone once again.

Before you vote this November, please take the time to review video footage of past Board meetings as well as the recent Q & A because Rust’s and French’s past actions give you some insight into their true vision for Hopkinton’s future. [https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=nnywind]