SOLAR POWER IN NEW YORK

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.

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.

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/.

The final 94-c regulations, effective as of March 3, 2021, are available at 

Chapter XVIII, Title 19 of NYCRR Part 900 (Subparts 900-1 – 900-15) 

Resources related to the PSC Document Matter Master system, local agency account funds, and regulatory documents can be viewed on the ORES website at https://ores.ny.gov/resources

Information on the permit applications currently under review (including that of Brookside Solar) and those which have been deemed complete, can be found at https://ores.ny.gov/permit-applications

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

Matter Master Number 21-00917 – Read more 

Cover Letter & Table of Contents 

Exhibit 1. General Requirements

Exhibit 2. Overview and Public Involvement

Exhibit 3. Location of Facilities and Surrounding Land Use

Exhibit 4. Real Property

Exhibit 5. Design Drawings

Exhibit 6. Public Health, Safety and Security

Exhibit 7. Noise and Vibration

Exhibit 8. Visual Impacts

Exhibit 9. Cultural Resources

Exhibit 10. Geology, Seismology, and Soils

Exhibit 11. Terrestrial Ecology

Exhibit 12. NYS Threatened and Endangered Species

Exhibit 13. Water Resources and Aquatic Ecology

Exhibit 14. Wetlands

Exhibit 15. Agricultural Resources

Exhibit 16. Effect on Transportation

Exhibit 17. Consistency with Energy Planning Objectives

Exhibit 18. Socioeconomic Effects

Exhibit 19. Environmental Justice

Exhibit 20. Effect on Communications

Exhibit 21. Electric System Effects and Interconnection

Exhibit 22. Electric and Magnetic Fields

Exhibit 23. Site Restoration and Decommissioning

Exhibit 24. Local Laws and Ordinances

Exhibit 25. Other Permits and Approvals

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 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 

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

Attachment A. Revised Exhibit 3. Location of Facilities and Surrounding Land Use

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

Attachment C. Revised Appendix 5-1. Facility Design Drawings: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9

Attachment D. Revised Appendix 6-2. Site Security Plan

Attachment E. Bard HVAC Sound Level Data

Attachment F. Revised Appendix 7-5 and Figure 7-5

Attachment G. Revised Visual Simulations VP4 and VP7: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Attachment H. Revised Exhibit 9. Cultural Resources

Attachment I. Additional Appendix 9-6. SHPO Human Remains Discovery Protocol

Attachment J. Revised Exhibit 11. Terrestrial Ecology

Attachment K. Revised Figure 1 of Appendix 11-1

Attachment L. Revised Exhibit 13. Water Resources and Aquatic Ecology

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

Attachment N. Revised GIS Shapefiles

Attachment O. Revised Figure 13-3. Delineated Surface Water

Attachment P. Revised Exhibit 14. Wetlands

Attachment Q. Revised Figure 14-1. Delineated Wetlands

Attachment R. Revised Wetland Delineation Report text and figure, submitted December 2021

Attachment S. Preliminary Jurisdictional Determination

Attachment T. Truck Turning Tracks

Attachment U. Revised Decommissioning Cost Estimate (Confidential)

October 17, 2022 - Download

April 19, 2022 - Download

February 22, 2022 - Download

February 11, 2022 - Download

April 14, 2021 - Download