Published on May 20, 2009

BARTON — Like weary tag team wrestlers, representatives of First Wind trundled back and forth between meetings of the Barton Village Trustees and the Barton Town Selectmen Monday night, trying to pin down overweight permits to lug huge pieces of a wind farm up Duck Pond Road and into Sheffield.

Richard Creaser reports on page 12 that First Wind and the town selectmen are close to agreement.

But by a fluke of the holiday calendar, the trustees met on the same night this week, and discussions with them bogged down quickly.  At least one more meeting will be required, if First Wind is to get a permit to move 132 large and heavy loads through the south end of the village on Route 5, and up the village’s three-tenths of a mile of Duck Pond Road.

Sitting down a little before 7 p.m. Josh Bagnato, environmental coordinator for First Wind, said he would have to leave at 7:55 to meet with the selectmen.  David Ertz, director of project management, could stay behind to resolve any final issues, Mr. Bagnato said.

Going point by point through demands made by the trustees at their last meeting with First Wind in April, Mr. Bagnato said the trustees’ concern about possible weak points in Route 5, or Lake Street, just south of the junction with Duck Pond Road is a matter for the state.  As a Class I road, Mr. Bagnato said, that is under the jurisdiction of the state Department of Motor Vehicles, which “has sole discretion to issue permits.”

That bothered Bob Ferlazo, chairman of the trustees, who works for the state Agency of Transportation.  He’d learned, he said, that the state’s jurisdiction extends to permits, but not repairs.  If the road is damaged, he was told, the village would have to fix it.

Mr. Bagnato and Mr. Ertz said video surveys of the village roads would be taken before and after the big loads go through, and First Wind will repair any damage it causes.

That led to a second issue.  Mr. Bagnato said First Wind would not provide the requested bond to guarantee that damaged roads would be repaired, though both the wind company and its transportation company would provide certificates of insurance.

“Our feeling is it’s not necessary,” Mr. Bagnato said.  “It’s not something we’re willing to do.”

As for a request that First Wind compensate the village for its trouble by repairing its ball fields, the answer was the same.  “We feel our repairs should be related to the roads we’re using,” Mr. Bagnato said.  The company, he said, was “not comfortable” with the idea of park repair.

That remark was echoed later in the meeting by an angry JoAnn Stefanski, a determined foe of the wind farm.

“They don’t feel comfortable offering something to Barton,” she said.  “I don’t feel comfortable letting them use our roads.”

“You have every right to say no,” Ms. Stefanski told the trustees.

First Wind, she argued, could approach its site from the Sheffield end of Duck Pond Road, using the tunnels under Interstate 91.  Or, she said, they could try a temporary access directly from the interstate to Duck Pond.

Mr. Ertz repeated his earlier arguments that neither alternative would work for the company.

“We would prefer to go through the tubes, believe me,” he said.  “That was the path of least resistance.  But no one felt comfortable going through the tubes.”

And the state doesn’t like the direct access idea, he added.

“That why we’re here,” he concluded.  “Our options are exhausted.”

Trustee Ellis Merchant said he was concerned that the village would be held liable if firetrucks or an ambulance couldn’t get to an emergency while a First Wind load blocked a section of Duck Pond Road.

“I’d like to make sure that liability isn’t on my shoulders,” Mr. Merchant said.

That would require a consultation with the village’s attorney, Bill May, who is out of town.

“I would strongly urge you on the bond,” Mr. Merchant added, “for our safety in case of the collapse of your company.”

The debate stirred a more passionate response from Liz Ferlazo, the wife of the chairman.

“Why the hell are we doing this?” she demanded.  “We’re just causing more friction in the village.  I just think this is stupid.”

A few minutes later, after glaring at the clock and Mr. Bagnato, Ms. Ferlazo told him, “It’s five of eight, you have a meeting.”

Mr. Bagnato left shortly after that, without saying goodbye.