EMPIRE WIND, LLC Gone...with the Wind





For three years, Empire Wind Energy, LLC had been whipping up dreams of wind towers and wind farms in the towns of Huron, Wolcott, Butler, Sodus, Rose and Galen. Countless meetings were held with each municipality and general presentations were made to the combined host towns. Along the way “Host Community Agreements” were formulated that promised jobs, revenue sharing and eventual ownership back to the host communites of any wind towers constructed.

Landowners were getting excited as every hilltop was proclaimed a possible windfall for wind generated energy. Farmers were ready to mow down trees and crops to cash in on the chance of getting in on the ground floor of green wind energy production. Towns throughout the area began changing zoning laws to allow for both small and giant wind turbines.

The idea was that Empire Wind Energy LLC, backed by Rochester/Paychex founder and billionaire Tom Golisano, would upfront the money for the projects and it would be a win-win for municipalities jumping onboard. Golisano, along with Pitman made a presentation to area business leaders, town board members, supervisors and county officials at a luncheon held at the former Cutter’s (Way Point) Restaurant on Sodus Bay in the Town of Huron two years ago.

According to Wolcott Town Supervisor Kim Park, the last time the towns of Wolcott, Butler, Sodus, Galen and Rose had a meeting with Empire Wind Energy back in April, the joint group was pushing to get progress reports and information from the Company.

Local town supervisors rallied around the plans that included huge tax incentives for the initial investor, but questions began surfacing concerning the eventual ownership of the wind turbines. After the tax credits expired, the host towns would eventually take over the wind power generating machines under the developed host community agreements. Plans were presented that showed how the host communities and landowners could gradually cash in on the green technology.

What wasn’t made clear was who would pay for upkeep once they became a landowner/municipality responsibility. Would the aging wind structures even be profitable? Could the wind projects generate the energy promised? What about potential grants? Could wind energy in this part of the state exist without grants and tax credits?

Wayne County participating towns and supervisors began getting the calls this past week. Empire State Wind Energy LLC, President and Chief Operating Officer Keith Pitman told Huron Supervisor Laurie Crane last Thursday that it was not economically feasible for Huron to get any wind turbines “at this time”. The remaining town supervisors also received calls from Pitman informing them that the projects were out of wind.

Park said she heard that costs for selling energy to the grid did not meet Company projections.

Empire State Wind Energy called Benton (Yates County) NY Town Supervisor Bob Clark last Tuesday. “He (Pitman) told me the proposed project would not happen, that it was not a profitable situation.” Clark said he also heard that Empire had ended their project in the Alfred area. “I did not have a good feeling about this from the beginning. A project is only as good as the developer,” added Clark.

Clark also said that, from the beginning, his town flatly refused to take ownership of any wind towers in their community agreement. “In ten years, those things go bad,” he commented.

Luckily, attorney fees accumulated by the towns following the Empire plan were paid, except in the Town of Huron, where Supervisor Crane said the company still owes their attorney about $5000. The other fees following through on developing the agreements have been paid by Empire Wind Energy.

Wolcott Town Supervisor Kim Park, along with Rose Supervisor Lucinda Collier, stated that although the potential wind project has derailed, they both sought only to advance any project that could bring a revenue stream into town coffers. “My town has minimal industry and it is my obligation to look for any resources for income,” said Collier. She stated that a great deal of time has been put in by the town board as well as zoning and planning boards based upon Empire’s proposals.

One supervisor said he became suspect when Pitman showed up in his town with his wife and one of his children to erect a sample wind testing tower on their own.

Calls to Keith Pitman’s private cell phone and the Company’s headquarters in Oneida, NY yielded only answering messages and no calls were returned.