BILL NUMBER: S9393
SPONSOR: COONEY
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act in relation to authorizing the county of Monroe to convey appro-
priate instruments to EH Henrietta Solar 1 LLC and EH Henrietta Solar 2
LLC for an easement across Lehigh Valley Trail Park, for ingress and
egress to and from the project site and installation of a medium voltage
cable
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 authorizes the County of Monroe (the "County") to grant to EH
Henrietta Solar 1 LLC and EH Henrietta Solar 2 LLC an easement across
Lehigh Valley Trail Park. The purpose of the easement is to install,
operate, and maintain an access road for ingress and egress for pedes-
trians, vehicles, and equipment, together with the right to install,
operate, and maintain a subsurface medium voltage cable for a solar farm
located on a landlocked parcel adjaCent to the Lehigh Valley Trail. Upon
completion of the improvements, the land shall continue use as a park
and any disturbances to the surface of the land due to the subsurface
medium voltage cable shall be restored.
Section 2 provides that alienation authorization shall be effective only
upon the condition that the county of Monroe dedicate the fair market
value of the easement toward the acquisition of new parklands and/or
capital improvements to existing park and recreational facilities.
Section 3 includes the description of the easement.
Section 4 provides that if the lands benefited by the easement cease to
be used for solar energy production, the easement shall terminate. At
the time of such termination, the removal of the access road and subsur-
face cable shall take place and the property shall be returned to its
previous state, consistent with park and recreational purposes.
Section 5 conditions the transfer upon the County with applicable feder-
al requirements pertaining to the alienation or conversion of parklands.
Section 6 is the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New York State has a comprehensive and ambitious goal of achieving 70%
renewably sourced electricity by 2030 and a zero-emission electric grid
by 2040. GreenSpark Solar is a company fully committed to this objec-
tive. As always, actions speak louder than words, and GreenSpark Solar's
actions in the solar sector have been remarkable.
In this regard, GreenSpark Solar and the Project Companies, EH Henrietta
Solar 1 LLC and EH Henrietta Solar 2 LLC, have planned for the develop-
ment of ground-mounted photovoltaic solar arrays located off Middle Road
in the Town of Henrietta. The parcel is directly south of the New York
State Thruway.
The EH Henrietta Solar 1 project is a 6.739 MW-DC, 5 MW-AC array. The EH
Henrietta Solar 2 project is a 2.414 MW-DC, 1.875-AC array. The power
generated by each project will support Community Solar Array subscribers
through a net-metering agreement. The clean energy produced by the solar
panels goes directly into the electric grid for distribution by the
local utility company. Community Solar subscribers receive a bill credit
for a share of the renewable energy net-metering credit.
Sustainable Energy Developments, Inc., D.B.A GreenSpark Solar will
construct and operate the projects. The arrays will have two points of
interconnection to the Rochester Gas & Electric utility grid.
The EH Henrietta Solar 1 project will have approximately 12,272 modules,
and the EH Henrietta Solar 2 project will have approximately 3,193
modules on a ground-mounted pier driven racking system. Together the
projects will occupy approximately 32.78 acres of the 55.38-acre trail-
adjacent parcel.
The Lehigh Valley Trail easement described in the bill is essential to
the success of each of these projects, as it would serve as the sole
access point to the landlocked parcel on which the projects will be
sited.
These projects constitute an important contribution to achieving the
State's 2030 and 2040 renewable energy goals. They will directly support
the local community through a PILOT agreement. They will also provide a
significant contribution toward the construction of amenities at Veter-
ans Memorial Park in the Town of Henrietta, as memorialized in the
Town's approval of the Incentive Zoning Application 1Z2023-001 submitted
in connection with this Project.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.