SCHENECTADY GE gets nod for green growth Old warehouse to house solar, wind endeavors BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter
General Electric won permission from the city Wednesday to recycle an old warehouse for its Renewable Energy division. GE is turning a relic from the days of its foundry into a $39 million, state-of-the-art office building. In an ambitious construction schedule, officials plan to move the first scientists there this December. The workers will be among the first increase in the force at the plant in many years. The plan also bucks GE’s trend of demolishing buildings at its site. Instead, for the first time in decades, GE will add to its campus. The addition will be small — a 19,000-squarefoot atrium attached to the warehouse. In it workers will showcase a nearlyfour-story model of a wind turbine. Outside, they will demonstrate various solar panels, each 8 feet tall and 20 feet long. Some will be fixed in place while others will move with the sun, allowing customers to see exactly what they could purchase. The Schenectady Planning Commission unanimously approved the project Wednesday without any criticism. The commission actually wanted to accept the project a month ago but was stopped at the last minute because the county Industrial Development Agency had not yet voted to become lead agency and certify that the project would not cause any signifi cant environmental impacts. The technicality made General Electric spokesman Cliff Barber anxious. He told the commission that he needed permission to start work soon if he was to stay on schedule. Commissioners offered to hold a special meeting as soon as the IDA voted. But it turned out the IDA’s hands were tied as well. That agency could not take the simple step of declaring lead agency status until all other agencies agreed to back off. The issue is normally not a problem, but members never heard back from the Department of Environmental Conservation. The worker who was supposed to send a letter of approval to the IDA was on vacation. Metroplex Development Authority Chairman Ray Gillen expressed frustration at the long delay, particularly since it involved General Electric. City and county officials spent years lobbying the company to expand its presence in Schenectady, and he said he couldn’t believe that long process was placed on hold by one simple governmental letter. But it all ended well. Eventually, the letter arrived, the IDA voted, the commission was able to give GE the green light and Barber said everything would turn out fine. “Obviously every job has its pitfalls,” he said after Wednesday’s vote. “The expectation still is we’ll get the people in there on time.”
Posted on: 06/25/08 Ross Marvin, Spotlight Staff email: marvinr@spotlightnews.com
Officials from General Electric Energy made their first public presentation to the town on a proposed towering wind turbine that would be built on company property off Interstate 890.
The turbine’s 130-foot blade will sit atop a 250-foot tower. The tower will stand 397 feet from the ground when its construction is complete. If the project moves forward successfully, GE officials are hopeful that the turbine could be operational by the end of the summer in 2009.
GE officials said the tower will be built 800 feet from an access road running parallel to I-890 where a former Navy test facility and X-ray facility once stood.
At the Rotterdam Planning Commission meeting on Tuesday, June 18, project development manager Ty Remington said the tower, which would generate 2,300 megawatt hours electricity each year and power 3 percent of GE’s plant, would be the first in the Capital District.
“This is a brand new project that has never been done in the Capital Region,” said Remington. “Rotterdam’s town seal is the windmill … this takes that into the future.”
The power generated by the turbine will be used to power GE’s Renewable Energies Headquarters.
According to Remington, GE currently has 8,000 of the 1.5 megawatt towers producing clean energy around the world.
Remington said he would be interested in sharing a video at the planning commission’s next public meeting in July that details the construction of an identical GE wind turbine erected at Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort in Massachusetts.
That $3.9 million tower, called the “Zephyr,” produces about a third of the total energy used at the ski resort.
The planning commission said they thought viewing the video would give the public a better sense of the construction process and total size of the turbine.
Planning Commission Chairman Larry DiLallo called the proposed wind turbine an “exciting new project.” He said the town is taking steps to pass a new wind ordinance similar to one passed earlier this month by neighboring Duanesburg. This would be the first project falling under the new law’s jurisdiction.
Town Planner Peter Comenzo said the new law would likely be adopted before the town’s review of the GE project is completed.
GE officials said they were making their plans in accordance with a potential change in town code.
When asked if GE would consider placing more turbines on its 628-acre plant, Remington said he thought a wind ordinance would allow only limited construction of wind turbines on it’s plant.
“At most we could build two or three more,” said Remington. “But we have no plans at the current moment.”
Remington said he anticipated that the turbine would be a showcase piece for both customers and tourists in the region.
He said that in the future GE may construct a visitor’s center to encourage school field trips and attract people from around the region who are interested in learning about the tower.
The planning commission declared itself lead agency for the project. Chairman DiLallo said that all interested and involved parties at the town, state and federal level would be notified.
Posted on: 07/09/08 Ross Marvin, Spotlight Staff email: marvinr@spotlightnews.com
Rotterdam is moving forward with its draft of a town ordinance that would regulate wind turbines.
At its meeting on Wednesday, July 9, the town board is expected to send the proposed law to the Planning Commission for a report and recommendation. Supervisor Steven Tommasone said that town attorneys are still in the process of refining some of the law’s language.
As it stands, the proposed law closely mirrors Duanesburg’s new wind ordinance, which was passed last month.
Like Duanesburg’s law, Rotterdam’s proposed ordinance puts wind turbine projects into two categories — large and small.
Any development designed to generate more than 100 kilowatts in an hour is considered a “Wind Energy Facility.” Projects on a lesser scale are called “Small Wind Energy Facilities” and are required not to produce more than 100 kilowatts of energy.
Large turbines can be no more than 500 feet tall, with the tip of the rotor or blade system no lower than 30 feet from the ground. Smaller projects will not exceed 200 feet in height, with their blades no lower than 15 feet from the ground.
The larger Wind Energy Facilities must be located at least 1,500 feet away from residences and 500 feet from off-site property boundaries or public roads.
All towers must be white in color.
Proposed towers will also be subject to state environmental reviews, including studies on visual impact and effect on local bird populations.
The law also establishes a fee for projects. Large project developers would pay a permit fee equal to $500 per megawatt of proposed turbine capacity. Smaller project applicants would pay a flat fee of $100. According to the proposed law, the permit fee would offset any internal permit processing costs borne by the town.
If Rotterdam passes the proposed wind ordinance later this month it would become only the second municipality in Schenectady County to do so.
The proposed law coincides with the town’s first major commercial wind tower proposal.
Last month, representatives from General Electric Co. went in front of the Rotterdam Planning Commission to propose a 397-foot tall, 1.5-megawatt wind tower.
The tower would be built on company property off Interstate 890. The turbine’s location would be 800 feet from an access road running parallel to the highway, according to project manager Ty Remington.
At that meeting, Town Planner Peter Comenzo said the new law would likely be completed and adopted before the town’s review of the project is completed.
GE officials said they were making their plans in accordance with the potential change in town code.
The town is also likely to execute a contract with GE to appoint engineering firm Barton & Loguidice to perform technical review services for the wind tower project at its Wednesday meeting. GE will pay Barton & Loguidice for their services in an amount not to exceed $20,000.
We have received our first application for review by our Planning Board next Thursday evening. The application is for a "small" wind turbine. Residential use. We will see how it goes.........stay tuned.
She should take a ride out to Duanesburg on any given day. Ride up on Scotch Ridge and over toward Mariaville. It is almost always 6 to 10 degrees cooler out here then it is in Schenectady. Each time you crest a hill there is a distinct difference in temperature and wind.
She should take a ride out to Duanesburg on any given day. Ride up on Scotch Ridge and over toward Mariaville. It is almost always 6 to 10 degrees cooler out here then it is in Schenectady. Each time you crest a hill there is a distinct difference in temperature and wind.
That is very true. Whenever I go to Duanesburg, it is cooler, snow falls earlier, snow lasts longer, springtime and summer arrives later. It is only a few short miles away and the weather is entirely different.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
Rene, I don't know if you can, or want to, release full information on it at this time, but can you give us a general idea where this person who is applying to put up a wind turbine is, even what section of town? Near 7 + 20? Up in the hills?
He lives on upper Mudge Road off of Duanesburg Churches. His name is Wooding. If you go up Duanesburg Churches off Route #20 and take a left about 2 maybe 3 miles up, I believe he lives pretty close to the end of Mudge Road. I am very excited about this. I hope it goes well for him and the law is workable.
Do the neighbors want it stopped? Ususally everyone is against it and thereat of causing cancer and all that like the cellphone towers. Also the visaul appeal that is lacking their may be someone suing because it ruins the view and that there. I know it didnt go over at the college down there because of whatever. I was thinking people are scared of the new technologies and all. I bet 100 people turn out at he Delanson town hall over this.
Judging from our Public Hearing for the local law, people are in favor of it. Do the neighbors want it stopped? We will find out when the Public Hearing is scheduled for this project. Time will tell.
Actually, if he's about in the area where Rene is stating, first of all, he doesn't have many neighbors. Second of all, I can't see the people up there being upset with something like this. In fact, isn't there a windmill already at the corner of Duanesburg Churches and Mudge Road? I think it's one of the older, "antique" ones that has no function, but instead is decorative? There's only 2 families that live up in that area that I know, one on upper Knight Road and one further up than this proposal on Duanesburg Churches. If they are anything like their neighbors, I see this going through with flying colors.
Now, if we could only get our town (whether that be Rotterdam or Duanesburg) or the county to start powering with natural energy, maybe in the long run, it would bring taxes down some...and if they stop using the oil and natural gas, that'll bring the price of that down in the end with less demand.
PSC should approve deal to let Iberdrola build windmills
The state Public Service Commission still hasn’t approved the proposed purchase of the utility Energy East by Iberdrola, a Spanishbased multinational corporation, but PSC staff, previously opposed, is now said to be at least open to it. That is welcome news, regardless of whether it’s because PSC staff has actually seen the light or just doesn’t want to be blamed for “losing Iberdrola” and all future investment by it in New York — which the company threatens will happen if the deal isn’t approved. Iberdrola isn’t just one of the world’s biggest suppliers of energy, it is the leading supplier of wind energy. And New York state has an official goal of getting 25 percent of its energy from renewable sources such as wind power by 2013. That is one of the reasons General Electric chose to locate its renewables headquarters and wind operations, the fastest-growing part of its entire business, in Schenectady, and just announced that it will spend $100 million to build three wind farms in upstate New York. Presumably, it also has something to do with Iberdrola’s wanting to come here and invest $2 billion over the next five years, building and operating wind turbines. But rather than welcome them with open arms, the PSC staff gave them the stiff-arm. If you want to buy Energy East, you will have to give up your current half-interest in a wind farm in northern New York, it told them, and pledge not to build any other wind farms in the state. And those $200 million in “benefits” you promised to your new customers, including a 4 percent rate reduction? Not good enough. Make it at least $600 million, it told them. The forced divestiture and forswearing of wind farms stems from a policy the PSC adopted in 1996 that says a company that transmits and delivers power can’t also produce it. The idea was to reduce rates and improve service by introducing competition into the utility system, which until then had been a regulated monopoly. Deregulation hasn’t been a total failure, but it hasn’t been a huge success, either. The flexibility it was supposed to bring for consumers has brought mostly confusion, and rates remain high. The energy industry is also rapidly changing, with everyone looking to develop alternative sources, use new technologies and be more efficient. So there’s no need to rigidly adhere to rules put forth by the PSC 12 years ago, especially when there’s a chance of getting a successful, respected company like Iberdrola to make such a major investment here. PSC staff has indicated that, while it still has problems with Iberdrola owning windmills, it is willing to compromise. That’s fine, as long as it’s a compromise Iberdrola can live with.
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