ATHENS — The Town of Athens Zoning Board of Appeals has denied Freepoint Solar’s application for a variance for the construction of a 43.4-acre solar farm on Potic Mountain, Supervisor Michael Pirrone said at last week’s board meeting.
Freepoint needs the variance to build at its chosen location, because the property, bordered by Potic Mountain Road, Center Road, High Hill Road and Buttermilk Road, is zoned residential.
An ad hoc committee formed for the purpose of advising the town on solar applications had pushed for the denial, due to the fact that the area is the home of the Northern Long Eared Bat, which is designated as a threatened species by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. In addition, 34.9 acres of trees would need to be cleared for the installation.
Athens resident Margaret Muenkel, the galvanizing force behind the newly formed committee and the push to deny Freepoint's application, said she is happy with the outcome. She also said that she is glad she had the other committee members working with her toward that aim.
“It was a group effort,” Muenkel said. “It’s good for Athens. It’s good for everybody. Trees should not be killed to save the world. We can find better ways of protecting the environment and not hurt the environment at the same time.”
Pirrone could not be reached for comment.
Peter Ford, managing director of Freepoint Solar, said the company will continue in its efforts to construct the solar farm.
“Our proposed project location on Potic Mountain Road is an ideal distance from an electrical interconnection to Central Hudson’s distribution system,” said Ford. “It is also ideal from an environmental perspective, as we received our negative declaration under state environmental quality review, and in terms of visibility, as the project site is surrounded by existing forest and located out of sight of the community. Ultimately, it is an ideal location for a community solar project.”
Ford said Freepoint is not considering another location for the installation and intends to appeal the Zoning Board’s decision.
This is the second time Freepoint Solar has been denied the location in Athens. The first time the Zoning Board ruled against Freepoint was in September 2021.
In response, Freepoint took its case to the New York State Supreme Court, which granted an appeal on the basis that the Zoning Board had not applied the correct property testing criteria to reach its initial determination.
The court directed the Board to consider the variance application under the public utility standard as established by the case Con Ed Co. of NY v. Hoffman.\
Freepoint reapplied for the variance in December 2022.
In June, the Town Board passed a six-month moratorium on all solar applications in order to provide itself time to rewrite the ordinance governing solar energy developments. Last week, the town passed a similar moratorium for the construction of cellular communication projects.
A separate committee to advise the town on cellular communication-related decisions has also been formed.