As part of the grassroots effort that opposed the 280-megawatt Excelsior Solar Project in the Town of Byron, Caswell Road resident Gayla Starowitz understandably is disappointed over Wednesday’s approval of the $345 million venture by the New York State Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment.
“I’m very disappointed, but I think we knew the answer because money talks,” Starowitz said this morning. “We tried our hardest. I felt that the judges’ statements were pretty much what Excelsior (Energy Center LLC) said at the last meeting and (as a result) we didn't have a chance to beat this money and beat this politics.”
Starowitz was a member of the Byron Association Against Solar organization that presented its arguments to the Siting Board over the past 2 ½ years, contending that the 1,700-acre project would negatively affect future farming and the rural character of the community, and that it was inconsistent with town and Genesee County comprehensive plans.
The Siting Board, at a hearing yesterday in Albany, voted 5-1 in favor of the project.
“I’m going to be looking at solar panels on all three sides of my house, for as far as I can see – and I’m not the only one in town in this situation,” Starowitz said. “Several acres across from my house; that’s all we’ll see, and there’s going to be a battery storage to the south of me.”
She said BAAS was in it to protect the farm land, but she also acknowledged that landowners have the right to lease their property to the solar developer.
“We don’t own the land,” she said. “So, right from the beginning, we understood that and we're not against solar, we're against massive placement in people’s front yards. It could have been put on poorer land and it could have been put way in the back where the houses aren’t going to be affected.”
Starowitz said she was proud of the grassroots effort.
“We gave it our best. The outcome wasn't what we had hoped for, but I'm proud that we took on this fight, well, that's not the right word. We took it on to be vocal and spoke up, but with all the politics, we just couldn’t stop this.”
The Batavian also reached out this morning to Ivison Road resident Jim Lamkin, who served as spokesperson for BAAS.
Byron Town Supervisor Peter Yasses called yesterday’s ruling “just a step in the process,” adding that he expects construction to start later this year.
When asked about the financial benefits to the town (as well as the Byron-Bergen Central School District and Genesee County), Yasses said the host agreement and payment in lieu of taxes settlement will start when construction starts.
The town is in line to receive $24 million over 20 years, beginning with an initial annual payment of $1.066 million and escalating by 2 percent each year.
According to figures provided by the Genesee County Economic Development Center, the solar farm will receive approximately $32.7 million in property and sales tax incentives. It will provide enhanced property tax payments via the 20-year PILOT by contributing $6,500 per megawatt/AC annually plus the 2 percent escalator.
Resulting property tax-type benefits of the project in the Town of Byron, Byron-Bergen Central Schools and Genesee County are estimated at more than $45.2 million.
Concerning the attempt by BAAS to stop, delay or modify the project, Yasses said, “They did the best they could, and I respect their thoughts and their efforts.”
