Michael Pasternak, the Chief Executive Officer of SAFE Holdings, the company that owns the Sustainable Aquafarm (SAF) facility, told the Berlin Town Board on Thursday, January 26 that plans for a Planned Development District have stalled, and he has had to rethink the whole process.[private]
Pasternak said that instead, they are moving ahead with the Aquafarm operation, with plans to expand it even further than originally announced.
He said the proposed bio mass project that would have produced crude oil from wood chips will be delayed. “I think people are going to wait before pulling the trigger on that because of the change in administration,” speaking of course about the election of Donald Trump as President. Pasternak told the Board, “we are instead focusing in on what we can do, which of course is the production of fish and lettuce.”
The facility is at the site of the former Seagroatt Roses plant just north of the village. The company currently owns about 100 acres, but he says they are talking to neighbors about purchasing another 50 acres.
Pasternak said the hydroponic lettuce production has begun, part of the initial 15-million-dollar investment in the project. Three million of this will come from a NYS Economic Development Grant announced just last December. The company has also applied for a loan from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which will require them to put up 10% or $1.5 million. Pasternak believes the lettuce production from the first greenhouses will pay for this.
Having abandoned efforts to create a Planned Development District like the Luther Forest project in Malta in Saratoga County, Pasternak’s company would like to work with the Town to clarify land use regulations governing his company’s development. According to Ted Kowlankowski of the engineering firm of Barton and Loguidice, they are looking at updating the town’s 1988 land use regulations. Kowlankowski said these are 30 years old and none of the key components of the facility are covered under them. “So we are thinking if we can get those added to amend the regulations rather than create a whole new zoning district, that might be a simpler approach to take.” He said their plan is to present the draft proposal to the Board at its February 9 meeting.
Town Supervisor Rob Jaeger said the proposal would have to also be looked at by legal counsel, as well as approved by the Town’s Planning Board, before there could be a public hearing and any vote on the changes.
Does Aquafarm Water Use Threaten Berlin’s Water District?
Water District 2 Commissioner Jim Winn has expressed a fear from the start of the project, that the amount of water required for the Aquafarm might draw down groundwater levels.
Pasternak presented to Winn and the Board studies done by his engineers that he said shows this is not a concern. He said his engineers estimate that on average 79,250,000 gallons of precipitation falls on the Town of Berlin per day. Their plans call for the drilling of 100 wells to extract 396,000 gallons of water a day, pump it into the fish houses on the terrace, heat it to 77 degrees and then ozonize, circulate and filter the water. It is then gravity fed to the lettuce greenhouse below, where 396,000 gallons leave daily as water vapor directly to the atmosphere. Pasternak also said the facility is monitoring their well levels daily, not only because of Mr. Winn’s concerns but because it is also an integral part of the planning needed for the correct spacing of the new wells. Currently the Water district uses about 220,000 gallons a day, but with all wells on line, can pump up to a half million gallons
Replacing The Bridge On Satterlee Hollow Road Is A Priority
Kowlankowski said the bridge is creating a little barrier to the development of the site He says the NYS Department of Transportation has flagged the bridge as needing replacement. He said he has had conversations with DOT about the process, and indicates it would have to start with the Town seeking to replace the bridge. This allows DOT to seek federal bridge replacement funds, which would cover 80 percent of the project. The other 20 percent is a local match, which Pasternak said his company would cover, so the net cost to the town would be zero.
Just how quickly such funding could be lined up remains in doubt, with Kowlankowski indicating it would probably require a coalition of local, state and federal representatives to help provide the impetus.
Another issue raised was the need for broadband communications in the town. Pasternak said the merger of Charter Communications and Time Warner into Spectrum requires the new company to expand broadband into rural areas, though Berlin would probably need to actively seek those upgrades to bring them here.
Supervisor Jaeger said when the second cell tower was erected in the town, is was designed to be capable of handing broadband. [/private]