News & Updates
The (Oneonta) Daily Star: March 10, 2008
Democracy in action in Meredith
During the past year, several towns in the region have grappled with the
issue of wind power, but none perhaps more contentiously than Meredith
in Delaware County.
Regardless of how you stand on wind power, Meredith has become a great
example of townspeople with the legal right to control their fate
actually exercising their democratic powers to take charge of their lives.
A year ago, Meredith planners were working on an ordinance to regulate
industrial wind turbines. After their work was completed, the town board
made changes to their proposal, held hearings and passed a law many
thought too lenient to wind-power developers.
So, in July, when it was time to file to run for town offices in the
November election, the planning chairman and others who opposed the town
board's action decided to use the ballot box to get the power to rescind
the ordinance they opposed.
In November, the anti-industrial turbine candidates were elected in
fairly close votes, presumably with a mandate to proceed to change
course on the law the town board had passed. And, indeed, that is what
is happening,
New town board members, keeping their campaign promise, are proposing to
rescind Meredith's wind-energy law and ban industrial wind turbines.
Less than a month after the board overturned the ordinance adopted by
the town board last summer, a public hearing on the proposed ban was
scheduled for last week, but weather forced postponement until March 18.
Supervisor Keitha Capouya, who chaired the planning board last year,
cited what she thought was a mandate for the board's action.
There had "a great deal of feeling about banning industrial wind
turbines in the town," she said, noting that more than 800 people signed
a petition opposing industrial wind, and of the dozens of people who
spoke at last year's hearing on the original law, only six or seven were
in favor of permitting industrial wind.
She said the proposed law does not ban small wind projects.
"We are very much in favor of alternative energy," Capouya said. "We are
putting together a task force to explore small wind, solar, geo-thermal
and private bio-mass energy projects.''
Capouya and her allied councilmen Ron Bailey and Dan Birnbaum readily
acknowledge that they ran for office for a cause and are going to
fulfill their pledges.
Though we generally have been in favor of wind development as an
alternative energy source, we also respect the rights of citizens to
democratically control the policies of their communities.
And the new leaders in the town of Meredith are doing just that.
3/6/08...SVW files request for opinion with the NY Department of State Committee on Open Government
SVW has learned that the Setback Committee appointed by the Richmondville Town Board has met in private to deliberate proposed setback limits for industrial wind turbines, without providing notice of the meeting to the public. Further, the Chair of that committee has responded to SVW's inquiry that he believes that the work of the Setback Committee is not subject to either the NY State Open Meetings Law or the NY State Freedom of Information Law. SVW disagrees and has filed a request for opinion with the NY Department of State Committee on Open Government (CoOG). If the CoOG finds that the actions of Town Committee were inconsistent with the law this would be the third separate opinion to that effect, indicating a disturbing disregard by Town officials for the rights of its residents and the requirements of the law.