ALBANY — The New York State Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment (Siting Board) announced that it will hold two virtual public statement hearings on Thursday, October 15, 2020, related to East Point Energy Center, LLC’s September 26, 2019 application to construct a 50-megawatt photovoltaic (PV) solar electric generating facility, to be located in the Town of Sharon, Schoharie County. The project would interconnect with the existing Sharon-Marshville 69-kilovolt transmission line, which is owned by National Grid.

On January 30, 2020, the Siting Board Chair determined that the Application, as supplemented, complies with the Siting Board's filing requirements.

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that virtual public statement hearings will be held before the examiners as follows:   

Any person who wants to comment on any aspect of this proceeding may make a statement on the record at the hearings. Registration is required to make a statement and will be accepted until 4:30 P.M. on October 13, 2020.

To register and participate electronically: To register, go to www.webex.com, click “Join” at the top right corner of the screen, enter the event number (listed above), and provide the requested information.

To join the hearing, go to www.webex.com, click “Join” at the top right corner of the screen and enter the event number for the hearing. Participants will be asked to “select audio system.” It is recommended that participants choose to have the system “call me” or “call using computer.” The “call me” option will require participants to enter their phone numbers.

To register and participate by phone: To register, call 1-800-342-3330. Follow the prompts to the appropriate hearing and provide the following information: first and last name, address, and phone number. To join the hearing, call 518-549-0500 and enter the access code (listed above).

All participants will be muted upon entry into the hearing. The Examiners will call on each person who has registered to speak. The hearing will continue until all those who registered to speak have done so or other arrangements have been made to include their comments in the record. Time limits for comments may be set to afford all registrants an opportunity to be heard. Lengthy comments should be summarized for oral presentation and then submitted in writing. A transcript of each hearing will be made and included in the record of this case.

To listen to the hearing: Individuals who would like to listen to the hearing but not make a statement do not need to register. To listen to the hearings by phone, call 518-549-0500 and enter the applicable access code. The hearings will be livestreamed on the Department of Public Service’s YouTube channel. To access the YouTube channel, visit www.dps.ny.gov and click on the YouTube icon at the bottom of the homepage.

Persons with disabilities requiring accommodations should call the Department of Public Service’s Human Resources Management Office at 518-474-2520 as soon as possible. TDD users may request a sign language interpreter via the New York Relay Service at 711. Individuals with difficulty understanding or reading English are encouraged to call 1-800-342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this notice.

The application may be reviewed online at www.dps.ny.gov. To access documents, go to “Search,” type in the case number, and click “Search by Case Number.”

Other Ways to Comment

For those who cannot attend or prefer not to speak at a public statement hearing, there are several other ways to provide your comments to the Siting Board. Comments should refer to “Case 17-F-0599.” Comments will be accepted until the proceeding has concluded, but they are requested by November 27, 2020.

Internet or Mail: Please visit www.dps.ny.gov, click on “Search” at the top of the page, enter the case number into the “Search by Case Number” field, then click on the “Post Comments” box at the top right of the page. Comments also are accepted by email, addressed to the Hon. Michelle L. Phillips, Secretary, at secretary@dps.ny.gov. Alternatively, comments may be mailed to Secretary Phillips at the New York State Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350. All written comments will become part of the record considered by the Siting Board and may be accessed on the Department of Public Service website by searching by the case number, as described above, and clicking on the “Public Comments” tab.

Toll-Free Opinion Line: Individuals may submit comments by calling the Department of Public Service’s Opinion Line at 1-800-335-2120. This line is set up to receive in-state calls 24-hours a day. These calls are not transcribed but a summary is provided to the presiding Examiners, who will report to the Siting Board.