Project Updates

 

Brookside Solar Public Hearing

  • Date: Wednesday, June 14, 2023
  • Time: 6pm
  • Location: ​Chateaugay Theater, 191 East Main Street, PO Box 9 Chateaugay, NY 12920

Project Description

 

The Brookside Solar project is a 100 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic electric generating facility proposed to be located on the border of the Towns of Burke and Chateaugay in Franklin County, New York. The project will span approximately 645 acres and plans to connect to the nearby Chateaugay-Willis 115kV transmission line. Brookside Solar is anticipated to positively impact both the environment and the local economy by reducing carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 131,000 metric tons each year – the equivalent of powering approximately 23,800 homes' electricity use per year. Additionally, the project will contribute to the local economy by producing significant tax revenue and other economic benefits for the area.

This is a map of the Brookside solar project
Panels

Brookside Solar project overview

Planned capacity

Construction jobs

C02 emissions reduction*

100 MW

150+

131,000 metric tons

*Approximate annual carbon dioxide emissions reduced

Project information is approximate and subject to change 

Project impacts

The Brookside Solar Project will support New York State’s climate goals and will have minimal impact on neighboring landowners, nearby communities, and surrounding landscapes. The Facility has been designed to minimize impacts to the maximum extent practicable and unavoidable impacts will be outweighed by the economic and environmental benefits of the Facility.

Specifically, stakeholders within the region will receive economic benefits from the Facility through construction, operation, and maintenance jobs, as well as expenditures for supplies and materials, lease payments to participating landowners, and tax payments to local communities. In addition, the Facility will promote public health and welfare by offering a sustainable alternative to generating electricity by non-renewable methods to meet New York State’s energy requirements. The Facility will contribute to a reduction in the amount of fossil fuel consumed, and a corresponding reduction of global carbon emissions, which may result in a reduced rise in global ambient air temperature. This reduction in GHG emissions will contribute to improved environmental health overall. The Facility plays a crucial role for the community and the entire state of New York, as it will help meet New York State’s energy goal outlined in the 2015 SEP and 2020 Amendment to the 2015 plan: achieving 70% of electricity generated by renewable energy in New York by 2030. Lowering these emissions also improves air quality, which is beneficial to respiratory and public health.

The Applicant (Riverside Solar, LLC) has conducted the surveys required by the Section 94-c process and the previous Article 10 process to assess potential environmental and community impacts, as well as aesthetic and visual impacts to the area surrounding the Facility Site. The Facility will not produce emissions of air or water pollution, no odors, and minimal noise. and will have a low profile relative to other types of development. Additionally, the Applicant intends to minimize impacts to community character through strategically placing fencing, vegetative screening, landscape strategies, maximizing setbacks from residential uses, and avoiding sensitive resources. Impacts related to the construction and operation of the Facility are limited to:

 

  • Temporary and minor permanent impacts to agricultural land (pasture and row crops), forested land, and successional shrubland. Areas that are temporarily impacted will be restored to their original condition following the completion of construction.

 

  • ​​​Tree clearing has been limited to 46 acres of the 1,471-acre Facility Site. It is focused in the eastern and western areas for the siting of solar arrays, fencing, haul roads, and inverter pads. By focusing clearing efforts in these areas, fragmentation of forested habitat will be limited and impacts to forestland will not be widespread. In addition, the Applicant will leave existing hedgerows and vegetative barriers where possible.

 

  • The Applicant will work with the Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) regarding mitigation to State-jurisdictional wetlands for unavoidable impacts of 0.03 acres. A wetland mitigation and restoration plan will be developed in accordance with Section 900-2.15(g) of the 94-c regulations.

​​​​​​​

  • There are no impacts to State-protected streams as part of the construction and operation of the Facility. All Facility components will be sited more than 50 feet from State-protected waterbodies.

​​​​​​​

  • The Applicant has developed a net conservation benefit plan (NCBP) for the short-eared owl, northern harrier, and Henslow’s sparrow involving Applicant-implemented grassland bird habitat conservation.

​​​​​​​

  • ​​​​​​​Traffic-related impacts associated with the Facility will be minor during the site preparation and construction phases when there may be a temporary increase in vehicle traffic on area roadways. Once operational, the workforce will not affect traffic around the Facility Site and will have no impacts on adjacent roadways.

​​​​​​​

  • Noise and vibrational modeling has been conducted to confirm that impacts resulting from the construction and operation of the Facility will not exceed the design goals listed within the regulations of Section 94-c of the New York State Executive Law. Adverse noise impacts have been avoided or minimized through careful siting of Facility components.

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

  • ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​There is minimal expected visibility of the Facility within the two-mile visual study area. In accordance with USC §900-6.4 (l), the Applicant will implement the Visual Impacts Minimization and Mitigation Plan, including visual contrast minimization and mitigation measures, a lighting plan, solar glare mitigation requirements, and screen planting plans.

94-c permitting process

The Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act (the “Act”) was passed in April 2020 as part of the final state budget. The Act added a new section 94-c to the Executive Law, titled Major Renewable Energy Development ("Section 94-c”, "94-c", or "the 94-c permitting process"), which established a review process with uniform permit standards for New York State renewable energy projects in place of the procedures set forth in Article 10 of the Public Service Law (“Article 10").

Section 94-c established the Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) within the NYS Department of State to provide a single forum for the environmental review and permitting of proposed major renewable energy facilities. This includes renewable energy systems with a nameplate generating capacity of 25 MW or more, co-located energy storage systems, and electric transmission facilities less than 10 miles in length. The final Section 94-c regulations were issued on March 3, 2021 and can be viewed here.

Article 10 applications that had already received a completeness determination are deemed complete under the new 94-c process, while projects currently undergoing the Article 10 siting process can choose to either remain in Article 10 or opt-in to 94-c. The 94-c regulations issued by ORES include an expedited permitting process to account for matters and issues already presented and resolved in the alternate Article 10 proceedings.

Prior to submitting a 94-c permit application, Applicants are required to consult with the local agencies and stakeholders of the community(ies) in which the proposed project will be located. ORES also requires that state agencies (e.g. NY DEC) are consulted on wetland and stream delineations, threatened and endangered species, and archeological and cultural resources, if appropriate. Agency consultations should take place at the earliest point possible in the Applicant’s process. Following consultations with impacted agencies, 94-c Applicants must hold at least one meeting for community members. The Brookside Solar Virtual Community Meeting was held on March 16, 2021.

Outside of the 94-c public comment period and requirements, Brookside Solar is committed to ongoing stakeholder and community engagement; including maintaining the “Public Involvement Program (PIP) Plan” log, even though it is not a 94-c requirement.

 From the date of its receipt of a permit application, ORES has 60 days to make a completeness determination. After a completeness determination, draft permit conditions will be issued by ORES for public comment. Within the comment period, the host municipalities must submit a statement indicating whether the proposed renewable energy facility complies with applicable local laws. ORES must issue a final decision on the siting permit within one year of the date on which the application is deemed complete. See below for a full diagram of the 94-c process, from pre-application activities through the start of construction.

This is a diagram of the 94-c process

  • On February 10, 2023, Brookside Solar received a Notice of Complete Application from ORES. In no more than sixty (60) days, ORES will publish a draft siting permit for public comment or a statement of intent to deny this Permit Application in compliance with the 94-c regulations.

  • On December 12, 2022, Brookside Solar submitted its Supplement Response to the second NOIA issued on October 17, 2022. The Supplement materials can be found on the DMM under DMM Matter Number 21-00917.

  • On October 17, 2022, Brookside Solar received a Second Notice of Incomplete Application (NOIA) from ORES.

  • On August 16, 2022, Brookside Solar submitted its 94-c permit application Supplement in response to the Notice of Incomplete Application (NOIA) issued by ORES on April 19, 2022. 

  • On April 19, 2022, Brookside Solar received a Notice of Incomplete Application (NOIA) from ORES.

  • On February 18, 2022, Brookside Solar, LLC filed its 94-c permit application with ORES. The Notice of Application Filing and Availability of Local Agency Account Funding reflects this project milestone. All permit application materials can be found on the New York State Department of Public Service’s Document Matter Manager (DMM) system, under DMM Matter Number 21-00917, and are also available below in the section titled 'Brookside Solar 94-c Application'.

  • On February 17, 2021, Brookside Solar filed a letter with the Secretary to the NYS Public Service Commission (PSC) noticing its election to be subject to Executive Law Section 94-c and stating its intent to file a Transfer Application with the Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES). The Brookside Solar materials filed under the Article 10 process can be found here, as Article 10 DMM Matter Number 20-00117.

Join the Brookside Solar master stakeholder list

Joining the Master Stakeholder List maintained by AES enables you to receive mailings of the 94-c required notices. You can join this list by filling out the 'Stay Updated' webform at the bottom of this page, by calling 866-757-7697, or by emailing brooksidesolar@aes.com.

 

Subscribe to the service list

If you would like to monitor the proceedings of the Brookside Solar 94-c application, you can do so without the formal commitment of becoming a party in the proceeding. By subscribing to the service list of a case (Brookside Solar: Matter Number 21-00917), you will receive an e-mail with a direct link to the documents issued by the Public Service Commission PSC), such as orders, notices, and rulings. If you are unable or unwilling to receive electronic notification, you will receive hard copies of Commission-issued documents by regular mail.

If you are a registered user of the NYS Public Service Commission's Document and Matter Management (DMM) System, you may submit your service list subscription by clicking here. Registration saves time and allows you to see and manage all of your service and party list subscriptions.

If you do not wish to register on the PSC's DMM System, you can download the Request for Service List form here. Please follow the instructions on the form.

 

Request party status

Generally, parties commit to contribute to the development of a complete record in a proceeding by conducting discovery, submitting testimony, briefs, or other formal written comments, and/or participating in evidentiary hearings, procedural conferences and other formal events conducted in the case. (Non-parties participate in PSC proceedings by filing informal comments, such as letters, in contrast to the formal comments filed by parties in response to Commission notices.)

For some PSC proceedings, including rate cases, a person need not be a party to petition for rehearing of the Commission's final decision; however, in some other proceedings, only those who were parties in the case may petition for rehearing. The right to challenge a PSC decision in New York State Court may also be limited to those who were parties to the PSC proceeding.

Under Commission rules, 16 NYCRR 4.3, you must seek permission to intervene as a party from the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), if one is assigned to the case, or from the Secretary if there is no ALJ assigned. The standard for allowing intervention is whether your participation is likely to contribute to the development of a complete record or is otherwise fair and in the public interest; whether other parties are unfairly prejudiced is also considered.

If you are a registered user of the NYS Public Service Commission's Document and Matter Management (DMM) System, you may submit your request for party status by clicking here. Registration saves time and allows you to see and manage all of your service and party list subscriptions.

If you do not wish to register on the PSC's DMM System, you can download the Request for Party Status form here. Please follow the instructions on the form.

When you submit the request for party status here, you will be provisionally added to the party list, subject to the right of other parties to object and subject to the final determination of the ALJ or Secretary. You will be required to mail your request to anyone on the party list who cannot receive e-mail service.

Intervenor funding is money that Applicants make available to qualified, locally affected parties and municipalities to offset certain expenses they incur in participating in the state permitting process. These funds are meant to encourage early and effective public involvement in project development and permitting.

With the filing of its 94-c application on February 18, 2022, Brookside Solar, LLC submitted the required local agency account fee of $100,000. These funds can be sought by local community intervenors and host towns. 75% of funds are reserved for municipalities.

Any local agency or potential community intervenor seeking funding must submit a request for initial funding within 30 days of the date of application filing. The deadline for requesting local agency account funds for Brookside Solar is 4:30 p.m. EST on March 24, 2022.

Requests for local agency account funds can be made via:

The ORES Request For Local Agency Account Funding form available in the Resources section of the ORES website

Or by email to:

general@ores.ny.gov 

Or by mail to: 

Attention: Request for Local Agency Account Funding
Office of Renewable Energy Siting
Empire State Plaza
240 State Street
P-1 South, J Dock 
Albany, NY 12242

Further details regarding requests for local agency account funding can be found in the Notice of Application Filing and Availability of Local Agency Account Funding.

If you have questions regarding the intervenor process, please contact the ORES office.

In addition to being viewable on this project website (see 'Brookside Solar 94-c Application', below) and the project Document Matter Master on the DPS website, the Brookside Solar permit application is available for viewing in print at the following locations, during regular operating hours:

Town of Chateaugay Town Hall: 191 E Main St, Chateaugay, NY 12920

Chateaugay Memorial Library: 4 John St, Chateaugay, NY 12920

Town of Burke Town Hall: 842 Depot St, Burke, NY 12917

To learn more about the 94-c permitting process, please visit the Office of Renewable Energy Siting website at https://ores.ny.gov/.

To submit any questions or comments regarding the 94-c permitting process, reach out to ORES by phone, email, written letter, or via this contact form on the ORES website (https://ores.ny.gov/)

  • (518) 473-4590

  • general@ores.ny.gov

  • Mailing Information (letters and envelopes):

Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES)
c/o: OGS Mailroom
Empire State Plaza
240 State Street
P-1 South, J Dock
Albany, N.Y. 12242

Project resources

 

Brookside Solar 94-c Application

 

Figure 2-1. Facility and Regulatory Boundaries

Figure 3-1. Topographic Maps of Facility Site 

Figure 3-2. Facility Site and Regulatory Boundaries

Figure 3-3. Current Land Use and Major Utility Infrastructure in the Study Area 

Figure 3-4. Tax Parcel Map within 1000 Feet of Facility Site 

Figure 3-5. Zoning Districts and Publicly Known Proposed Land Uses in the Study Area

Figure 3-6. Designated Areas within the Study Area  

Figure 3-7. Aerial Photography of the Study Area 

Figure 4-1. Real Property Map  

Figure 6-1. Emergency Facilities and Hazards in the Study Area 

Figure 7-1. Sound Level Modeling Locations

Figure 7-4.1. Short Term Sound Level Modeling Results 

Figure 7-5.1. Substation Sound Level Modeling Results

Figure 7-j.1. Construction Sound Level Modeling Results

Figure 7-j.2 Cumulative Construction Sound Levels (Trenching)

Figure 10-1. Slope Map 

Figure 10-2. Surficial Geology Map 

Figure 10-3. Bedrock Geology Map 

Figure 10-4. Seismic Hazard Map 

Figure 10-5. NRCS Soil Unit Map 

Figure 11-1. Mapped Impacts to Plant Communities 

Figure 13-1. Water Wells, Groundwater Aquifers, and Recharge Areas 

Figure 13-2. Mapped Wetlands and Surface Water 

Figure 13-3. Delineated Surface Water

Figure 13-4. Depth to Bedrock and High Groundwater

Figure 14-1. Delineated Wetlands 

Figure 15-1. Agricultural Land in the Study Area 

Figure 15-2. Location of Drainage Features within the Study Area 

Figure 15-3. Agricultural Soils on the Facility Site 

Figure 19-1. Potential Environmental Justice Areas 

Appendix 1-1. Certificate of Formation

Appendix 1-2. Brookside Solar, LLC New York State Entity Status

Appendix 2-1. Solar Array and Racking Specification Sheets

Appendix 2-2. Virtual Community Meeting PowerPoint

Appendix 2-3. Virtual Community Meeting Questions and Answers

Appendix 2-4. Meeting Log

Appendix 2-5. Local Agency Meeting PowerPoint

Appendix 2-6. Community Meeting Notifications and Affidavits

Appendix 3-1. Franklin County Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy

Appendix 3-2. North Country Regional Sustainability Plan

Appendix 4-1. Survey of Properties Leased by Applicant

Appendix 4-2. Demonstration of Title or Lease in Facility Site

Appendix 5-1. Facility Design Drawings

Appendix 5-2. Inverter Specification Sheet

Appendix 5-3. Main Power Transformer Specification Sheet

Appendix 6-1. Safety Response Plan

Appendix 6-2. Site Security Plan

Appendix 6-3. Agency Consultation

Appendix 7-1. List of Modeled Sound Sources

Appendix 7-2. List of Sound Receptors

Appendix 7-3. Pre-Construction Sound Level Measurement Program

Appendix 7-4. Facility Modeled Sound Levels - Leq (8-hour)

Appendix 7-5. Collector Substation Modeled Sound Levels - Leq (1 hour)

Appendix 7-6. Collector Substation Layout

Appendix 7-7. Manufacturer Sound Level Data Sheets

Appendix 7-8. Glossary of Terms

Appendix 8-1. Visual Impact Assessment

Appendix 9-1. Phase IA Archaeological Survey and Sensitivity Assessment

Appendix 9-2. OPRHP Facility-Related Communication

Appendix 9-3. Historic Architectural Resources Survey and Effects Report

Appendix 9-4. Phase IB Archaeological Survey

Appendix 9-5. Phase IB Addendum Archaeological Survey

Appendix 10-1. Geotechnical Report

Appendix 11-1. Invasive Species Management and Control Plan

Appendix 11-2. USFWS IPaC Consultation

Appendix 12-1. Wildlife Site Characterization Report

Appendix 12-2. Grassland Breeding Bird Survey Report

Appendix 12-3. State-Listed Wintering Grassland Raptor Survey Report

Appendix 12-4. Determination of Occupied Habitat, Incidental Take, and Net Conservation

Benefit

Appendix 12-5. Net Conservation Benefit Plan

Appendix 12-6. Occupied Habitat and Estimated Take Response

Appendix 13-1. FOIL Request

Appendix 13-2. Private Water Well Survey

Appendix 13-3. Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan

Appendix 14-1. Wetland and Stream Delineation Report

Appendix 14-2. Wetland Functions and Values Assessment

Appendix 14-3. ORES Surface Waters and Wetlands Jurisdictional Determination

Appendix 15-1. Real Property Agricultural Assessment Records

Appendix 15-2. Agricultural Viability Landowner Survey

Appendix 15-3. Agricultural Plan

Appendix 15-4. Drainage Remediation Plan

Appendix 16-1. AASHTO Tables and Sight Distance Diagrams

Appendix 16-2. NYSDOT Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT) Volumes

Appendix 16-3. Accident Summary Data 2018-2020

Appendix 16-4. School Bus Routes and Transit Routes

Appendix 16-5. Emergency Access Routes

Appendix 16-6. Posted Bridge and Culvert Data

Appendix 16-7. Construction Access Routes

Appendix 16-8. Highway Capacity Software (HCS) Level of Service Output

Appendix 16-9. Truck Turning Templates

Appendix 16-10. FAA Notice Criteria Tool Screenshots

Appendix 20-1. Proposed Collection Substation

Appendix 20-2. Proposed Point of Interconnection

Appendix 21-1. Systems Reliability Impact Study

Appendix 21-2. Transmission & Collection Design Criteria

Appendix 22-1. Electric Magnetic Field (EMF) Study

Appendix 23-1. Site Decommissioning and Restoration Plan

Appendix 24-1. Town of Burke Zoning Law

Appendix 24-2. Town Solar Laws

Appendix 24-3. Town Code Enforcement Laws

Appendix 25-1. USACE Facility-Related Correspondence

 

Brookside Supplement Response to NOIA

On August 16, 2022, Brookside Solar filed its 94-c permit application Supplement in response to the Notice of Incomplete Application (NOIA) issued by ORES on April 19, 2021. The Supplement response and attachments (A-U) are included below. 

Cover Letter

Brookside Solar Supplement to 94-c Application

Second notice of incomplete application (NOIA)

October 17, 2022

Notice of incomplete application (NOIA)

April 19, 2022

Notice of application filing and availability of local agency account funding

February 22, 2022

3-day notice of intent to file a 94-c application

February 11, 2022

60-day notice of intent to file a 94-c application

April 14, 2021



Virtual Community Meeting Resources

March 16, 2021

 

Watch the recording→

View the slide deck →

View the Q&A →

Link to 94-c application filings (via the DPS' DMM)

Matter Master Number 21-00917

Contact us

We want to hear from you! For any inquiries or comments about Brookside Solar, please contact us directly at:

  • Project Email: brooksidesolar@aes.com

  • Project Phone Number: 866-757-7697 (866-SLRPOWR)

  • Office Address: 292 Madison Avenue 15th Floor New York, NY 10017

New York office hours

Have a question or comment for AES about our work in your community? Give us a call during these hours to talk to a company representative.

  • Every Monday from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM ET
  • Every Thursday from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM ET
  • Call our New York office at 866-757-7697 (866-SLRPOWR)

Stay updated

If you would like to be designated as a Project Stakeholder and added to the Project's Master Stakeholder List, please fill out the following form. Individuals and groups on this list receive mailed copies of the regulatory project notices required by 94-c.

CAPTCHA