FARMINGTON – County Commissioners voted to rescind their support of the New England Clean Energy Connect project at Tuesday’s meeting.
The vote revokes a letter sent in fall of 2017 in support of the project but does not take an active stand against the transmission line, effectively leaving the commissioners neutral.
Commissioners issued a letter of support on Oct. 18, 2017, prior to Central Maine Power’s bid being accepted by Massachusetts in January 2018, following an initial presentation regarding the project. The decision to revoke that support Tuesday follows a pattern across western Maine that has seen some selectboards either vote to rescind previous support or outright oppose the project, which is seeking state approval through the Maine Public Utilities Commission, the state’s Department of Environmental Protection and the Land Use Planning Commission.
Wilton’s board is now in opposition to the project, following a special town meeting vote earlier this month, while Farmington residents will be able to weigh in on the issue at the annual town meeting on Monday, March 25.
A number of mailers have been sent to Farmington residences in advance of Monday’s vote. Greater Franklin Development Council Executive Director Charlie Woodworth took issue with one such advertisement, saying in a statement read at Tuesday’s meeting that the flyer had included a statement by GFDC that the organization hadn’t made. Woodworth corrected that statement Wednesday, saying that the language on the flyer had in fact been made by GFDC in 2017, prior to Woodworth becoming the executive director.
GFDC has endorsed the project and associated settlement agreement, as indicated in a letter sent to the MPUC last month. In that letter, Woodworth indicated that GFDC would prefer to see broadband support included within the settlement better target the needs of the county. Currently, a significant portion of the value of the broadband component is tied up in bringing fiber optic cable along the transmission corridor, Woodworth wrote, which has little value in Franklin County due to its proximity to the preexisting 3-Ring-Binder network. Instead, GFDC is advocating that CMP waive make-ready costs and annual pole licensing fees, which would help reduce the cost of bringing high-speed internet to new parts of the county.
So they are neither for or against the project.
What’s good does that do?
Enjoy your lunch commissioners.
Glad to see the county commissioners rescinding their support. Maybe they could have asked the public in 2017 before supporting it in the first place.
A fun fact : Beginning in 2019, under an agreement with the Kibby Mountain Wind Project, the commission decided 75% of the tax revenue from the project would be captured in a TIF, Of that 75%, 40% is kept by the county and 60% is reimbursed to TransCanada.
They should have outright opposed the project!!
Thank you commissioners. I think a next step that would be more representative of the people is to come out against it. Wilton was 162-1. Farmington speaks next…maybe after that?
Again, thank you.
Much appreciated Franklin County Commissioners. Especially at this point in the process. The withdrawal of you support helps prove that this isn’t a done deal and adds new momentum to those who would rather not take CMP at their word….