IS CAPX2020 DRAINING YOUR ENERGY?

Many Eureka citizens are dealing, in one way or another, with what many might see as the disfigurement of the Township by fifteen-story-high power lines.

But did you know that the Town Board had a possibility to soften the impact, at least in its early stages of the installation, but passed up the opportunity?  This is a story you would not necessarily know from the minutes, but would know if you had been in attendance at a recent Special Board Meeting.

First, you need to know that, at a Special Meeting as opposed to a regular one, the Board can discuss only those items that have been listed under the agenda in the posting of the meeting.  The post has to be up at the Town Hall bulletin board (the official posting site) in time to give citizens a three-day notice of the meeting, not counting the day of the posting and the day of the meeting.  It happens that, at the eleventh hour, "CAPX2020" was added to then already-published agenda.  This is actually okay by procedure, but requires that citizens are alert for such last minute changes if they want to be fully informed.

[If you have certain items that are of interest to you, be advised that the best way to stay on top of things is to ask to to be placed on the "alert" list that the Town Clerk maintains.  She is to send you all agendas, notices of public hearings, Special Meetings, and the like, saving you from having to check the bulletin board or the website. (The latter is NOT the official posting site.)  BE AWARE, however, as mentioned in an earlier posting, the Board can add items to a regular meeting agenda as late as at the meeting itself.  Refer to the "Housekeeping" addition of two controversial Ordinance items; Chair Storlie made these additions at the "agenda approval" time during the beginning of the June meeting that night.  Unless a person was in attendance, he would have had no idea that these items were to be discussed.]

Second, you should know that Supervisor Miller recused himself from the vote I am about to tell you of because he is being paid for the use of his property for a lay-down yard for the utility's equipment/materials needed for the installation.  It was proper that he do so, since he has a financial interest in the matter...

Third, the permit application and its representatives at the Special Meeting asked for Monday thru Friday hours of 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., with an additional half hour on each end, and Saturday hours of 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., again with one half hour on either side.

Supervisor Budenski moved to limit the hours to Monday thru Friday only, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Not one of the remaining other three Supervisors seconded Brian's motion.  Therefore, it died from the lack of a second.

Chair Storlie then proceeded to move to approve the application as presented; Supervisor Ceminsky (perhaps serving as earlier described as Storlie's "right hand man???") seconded that motion.  The motion passed, 3-1.  Supervisor Budenski was the dissenting vote, while Supervisors Madden, Ceminsky and Storlie voted in favor of the longer hours plus Saturday work as described in the Great River Energy application.

You can form your own opinions of this maneuver, but we wanted to you to know the full story as we understand it. What is required to be recorded in the minutes is all motions, seconds, and votes.  Supervisor Budenski's motion would not be listed as it died.

FYI, very few "regular citizens" were in attendance at the meeting.  



Is your property on the CAPX2020 Route?  Are you negotiating property values with them right now?

Know your rights.