updated 4/13/24
Everpower in Allegany
In 2009, Everpower Wind Holdings came to the Town of Allegany, New York in Cattaraugus County with a proposal to site 500-foot tall wind turbines (maximum blade tip height) along a ridge extending from the Hamlet of Chipmonk to the area of Nine Mile Road and Rock City to the east. The project went through a rocky review that turned sour for the developer when it was learned that Everpower had failed to disclose the location of a permanent resident within the project site. At this location the company could not comply with liberal noise standards it had successfully urged the Town to adopt. When asked to model the noise impacts at that location in 2012, Everpower sued the Town and lost.
During the same period, Everpower succeeded in obtaining local approval for a wind project in the Town of Howard (Steuben Co.). At that time, approvals for siting large-scale renewables were governed by the State Environmental Quality Review Act and local laws, and town boards or planning boards were the lead agency.
Everpower's projects have since been flipped to other developers such as Longroad Energy Services.
Background (Concerned Citizens of Cattaraugus County website)
Cattaraugus County Supreme Court decision, dismissing Everpower lawsuit against Allegany Planning Board (February 28, 2013)
Host Community Agreement between Everpower and Town of Allegany (August 2011) (7 MB)
Everpower's second request to Allegany Planning Board for an extension of time on its July 2011 special use permit (September 28. 2012)
Everpower's first request to Allegany Planning Board for an extension of time on its July 2011 special use permit (April 3, 2012)
Everpower's lawsuit against the Allegany Town Board (filed October 5, 2012)
Exhibit A (Everpower-Allegany contract)
Exhibit B (Everpower letter of commitment)
Exhibit C (revised December 2011 Escrow Agreement)
Exhibit D (August 2011 Escrow Agreement)
Everpower's lawsuit against the Allegany Planning Board (filed November 14, 2012)
CCCC comments and technical submissions:
(January 9, 2013)
attachment: A Cooperative Measurement Survey and Analysis of Low Frequency and Infrasound at the Shirley Wind Farm in Brown County, Wisconsin (December 24, 2012) (5 MB)
attachment: "Study finds 'dangerous levels' of noise from turbines," Green Bay Press Gazette (January 6, 2013)
Noise impacts of larger turbines (September 4, 2012)
On height limits for wind turbines (July 26, 2012)
On changing the local zoning law (June 21, 2012)
On Everpower's April 3, 2012 request (May 11, 2012)
Supplement to Comments (May 14, 2012)
On what the 2011 elections meant (February 10, 2012)
(September 12, 2011)
Comment letter, August 25, 2011 (summarizing outstanding issues
prior to a vote to approve wind facility overlay zoning) Attachments:
1 Stephen Ambrose and Robert Rand, “Wind Turbine Noise: An independent assessment, noise complaints predictable,” repr.
5 David A. Stillwell, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Letter to Michael Speerschneider, EverPower Wind Holdings, Inc. (July 11, 2011)
Attachments:
Comment letter, January 7, 2011 (on relaxing noise restrictions in the
local wind law) (3.7 MB) Comment letter, May 3, 2010 Attachments: 1 NY Department of Environmental Conservation, Assessing and Mitigating Noise Impacts (2001) 2 Richard James, Sound Study and Comments on the Everpower Project (3.5 MB) Appendix (3.8 MB) References (9 MB) Graphs (512 KB)
Attachments:
1 Meteorologist Don Paul, WIVB Channel 4 (wind farms interfere with weather radar forecasting)
4 "Testimony continues," December 2, 2009 (news report on
R. James and D. Hessler acoustic opinions in Buckeye wind farm case, Champaign County, Ohio)
CRA comments & Everpower responses (2.2 MB)
"Financial backers for local wind projects come from far and wide," Times Herald (Olean, NY), October 13, 2008
"Board to listen to the noise: presentation set on noise impacts of wind farms," Times Herald (Olean, NY), January 13, 2009
"Sound expert discusses impact of noise created by wind turbines," Times Herald (Olean, NY), February 9, 2010
