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Wallkill Valley Times, Wednesday, October 4, 2017
Maybrook honors police officers for heroic actions during standoff
Photos provided
At last week’s Maybrook Village Board meeting,
Mayor Dennis Leahy awarded Town of Montgomery and
Village of Maybrook Police Chief Arnold Amthor and
four police officers for their heroic actions during a
standoff in May that left Amthor wounded.
Left: (l. - r) Maybrook Sgt. Michael Maresca,
Montgomery Lt. Alex Landolina 111, Lisa Amthor, Alice
Amthor, Maybrook officer Kevin Greany and Town of
Montgomery officer John Hank pose for a picture out-
side of the Maybrook Town Hall on Sept. 26.
Above: Leahy with Amthor’s wife Lisa and mother, Alice
Amthor.
Another solar facility eyed for Montgomery
By RACHEL COLEMAN
Even as the town is putting the
finishing touches on a new law to govern
solar facilities, another application has
been submitted to the Montgomery
Planning Board.
The new proposal would erect a 6.0
mega-watt ground-mounted solar facility
on Albany Post Road at the intersection
with Route 52.
“We think it’s a good place to develop
a solar facility in the town,” Alex Farkes
told the planning board on Monday.
Farkes represents the applicant, IES
Montgomery Family Limited Partnership,
and told the board that they were well
aware of the proposed local law and have
no objections.
“We hope it gets passed at the next
meeting,” said Farkes.
Farkes explained that the property in
question is in the residential, agricultural
and highway commercial zones.
It
consists of three parcels with a combined
area of 84.4 acres. While it does contain
state wetlands, they will not be disturbing
them or their buffer.
“The good thing is you’re not cutting
a lot of trees down,” said Planning Board
Chairman Fred Reichle.
In contrast to other proposals, the
applicants do not need to clear trees as
the property is old farmland. This puts
them ahead of the curve in terms of the
project’s impact on stormwater.
Farkes explained that the energy
generated by the facility will be sold to
local residents through NYSEG. They
are currently in the process of being
approved by the company, with study
results expected in November.
An
upgrade to NYSEG’s infrastructure—
such as the poles along Route 52—will
be necessary. The applicant will finance
those upgrades, which will be done by
NYSEG.
The proposal was adjourned to the
next planning board meeting on Oct.
10, at which time the board anticipates
declaring its intent to be lead agency as to
SEQRA.
The board also conducted a public
hearing for Grabinski Solar, on Monday.
The project is a commercial solar
application proposed for Lake Osiris Road,
which has been making slow progress
before the board.
“The board is incredibly frustrated.
I’m frustrated,” said engineer Andrew
Fetherston, consultant to the Planning
Board.
Fetherston explained that a “repetitive
issue” with the applicant’s engineer
regarding drainage is “basically stopping”
the proposal from being approved. He
explained that the newest set of plans
received just hours before the meeting
still had the same problem: water is not
flowing to the detention areas.
A spokesperson for the applicant
ensured the board that they were
addressing the issue and obtaining a new
engineer. In the meantime, they had
agreed to submit decommission plans to
the board as well as financial security,
which Planning Board Attorney Richard
Hoyt said made the board feel “very
comfortable” regarding those issues.
The public hearing on Grab inski Solar
was continued to Oct. 30 at 7:30 p.m.
In other business, the public hearing
for the Van Norstrand project—a
warehouse to be located on Route 52 about
800 feet west of Van Wert Lane—was
closed after receiving no public comment.
The applicant is to provide revised plans
to the board addressing the comments of
their consultants.
RIBBON CUTTING