Friday, October 28, 2011

Acciona Wind Lease Easement Clauses



In the past, I have written about the wind lease loyalty clauses and the potential implications for our conflicted Municipal officers.

However, the signing of the loyalty clauses by our Municipal officers is not the only thing in the wind lease that may have potential implications for our community.

The wind lease agreements also contain what are called easements.

The following is from a lease easement that was entered in to by Harvey White and Acciona.

Acciona has a couple of interesting easements in their lease agreements.

Windpower Facility Effects Easement. AND the Waiver of Setback and Setback Easement.

The Windpower Facility Effects Easement
.

ii) Windpower Facility Effects Easement...Grantor hereby grants Grantee a perpetual easement (the “Windpower Facility Effects Easement “)

[A perpetual easement is that type of easement, which is to last without any limitation of time. It is a right, which a person has on the property of another person, which to an extent is permanent. ]

for any audio, visual, view, light , noise, vibration, air turbulence, wake, electromagnetic or other effect of any kind or nature whatsoever resulting , directly or indirectly from the construction instillation, maintenance or operation of Wind Power Facilities in the vicinity of the property; to generate and maintain audible noise levels on and above Property wherever originating at any or all times of day or night; and to cast shadows and reflect glare onto the property, whether intermittent(flicker) or constant , from Windpower Facilities wherever located, and agrees not to bring any complaint , suit or action or intervene in any investigation or inquiry by any person or entity with respect thereto.Regarding the laundry list of wind turbine issues above the leaseholder has agreed never to bring any complaint, suit or action or intervene in any investigation or inquiry.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
By signing this, would our conflicted municipal officers be at odds with Acciona’s Community Relations and Complaint Resolution Plan?
~~~~~~
Would conflicted Municipal Officers be able to support citizens if they were to have an issue with any of the effects caused by wind turbines ?
~~~~~~
Waiver of Setback and Setback Easement
(iii) Waiver of Setback and Setback Easement. Grantor hereby grants Grantee a perpetual easement (the “Setback Easement”) pursuant to which Grantor consents to Grantee is siting of Windpower Facilities at any location upon property near the Property and by which, to the fullest extent applicable and permitted by law, this means that
Grantor waives enforcement of any and all setback requirements related to the siting of Windpower facilities upon property in the
Vicinity of the Property
, including Setback Requirements applicable to the Windpower Facilities from lot lines, residents and other improvements, consents to setbacks for the Windpower Facilities being less than required by such Setback Requirement and agrees not to bring any complaint, suit or action or intervene in any investigation or inquiry by any person or entity with respect thereto.
Grantor agrees to use commercially reasonable efforts to assist , cooperate and participate in any proceeding and petition prepared by grantee in connection with any modification or variance to an existing siting or Setback Requirement. Further, if so requested by Grantee, Grantor shall, without demanding additional consideration therefor,
(i) Execute (and if appropriate cause to be acknowledged) any setback waiver, setback elimination or other document or instrument reasonably requested by Grantee in connection therewith.

Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, this agreement shall be deemed a “setback agreement”
For the purposes of the Town of Cape Vincent Wind energy facility law.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Would these lease clauses have implications for conflicted Municipal officers establishing and/or enforcement of a wind law?
By signing lease agreements with these types of easements, would our conflicted Municipal officers be required to put the Best interests of Acciona over those of the community? Would Our Municipal officers be unable to vote in favor of a protective sound study or a moratorium or even a Property Protection Plan?

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's a catch 22 for sure. The old "damned if you do,,," , and so on. The optional lease states "for the life of the project". Which could be the same thing. Isn't it funny how my paranoia kept me from signing away my rights. Like anyone else, I could use the money. There was an expression once. Never sell your land. This lease is even worse than selling land. I expect King Harod would send around a crew once a year and collect the newborn sons. Anyway, it's going to be interesting to see how this plays out. The fun thing about knowing more than people think you do is watching what happens when they find out you're right. If the conflicted break the contract and it causes the corporation
( St. Lawrence Wind) any interruption they will be sued anyway for damages. If they break the contract to get their jobs back, they lose. If they get their jobs back, ( excuse me , hahahahahahahahahahahahaha) they will still be breaking the ethics code for conflict of interest. In engineering this is what's called guano hitting the wind tower. These are small nobodies. Wait until the real snakes in the grass start coming out. Right, TI?

Anonymous said...

I am amazed again at the reality that either people did not read the lease, did not understand the lease or were just so blind because of the money? Heck, they did not offer $5000 a week for life....you are better off with the Clearinghouse Publishers drawings!

Really, how could anyone be so blinded by what little money was offerred that they GAVE AWAY all rights to their lands?

Any now they want me to trust them running the local government? Are you kidding?

Vote Hirshey, Schneider and Byrne for ethical town leaders who will read any contract before they sign it!

Anonymous said...

I guess this pretty much wraps it up.
with these obligations to the developers, no one with a lease or a good neighbor agreement should even be allowed to run for office. It wouldn't be fair to most town residents.
Thanks for pointing this out so clearly K.

Anonymous said...

Only and idiot would sign such a document.

Anonymous said...

“Well, Duh!”

Anonymous said...

I bet a good number of them knew exactly what they were signing, they just don't give a damn.
That's what a wind lease is...a Bad Neighbor agreement.

Anonymous said...

The true minority are those who have refused to sign leases. The true majority allowed this to happen in the first place. So why should I trust those in town hall who are corrupted and those who let them get there in the first place? From my viewpoint people who have corrupted town hall no longer exist. They are zombies. My hat goes off to those who held out. All else is talk.

Anonymous said...

"Bad neighbor" , it's one thing when a town allows anything to be put on adjacent property that diminishes a person's quality of life and property values. How about snowmobiles running across your property as though they own it? It seems anyone who owns railroad bed property has no rights according to the majority in town. They want their own quality of life.That property doesn't belong to the town regardless of the fact that the town enjoys the water main that was put there. Adding insult to injury, have you ever thanked those who allowed DANC an easement for that? Did any of that come out of your land? It's ok to do what you want on someone else's property , but let's here those screams when it happens to you. I've seen what the hypocrites do. It's not just a few scumbags they let do what they wanted until it affected them. You let a minority take what they wanted and now you have to fight to get it back.Imagine how it is for the real minority if the real majority has such as hard time correcting an injustice. You don't listen very well. We aren't stupid people, we don't do things without thinking first. Show some respect.