Town of Cape Vincent Zoning Fiasco Reported By the Watetown Daily Times.

Link to the WDT story below.

http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20130917/NEWS03/709179900

As my readers know I have been covering this situation in detail in numerous  posts since about late July.  My thanks to Brian Kelly and  the WDT for reporting this important story.  I am glad Mary Grogan's story is being told because she is a CV citizen that has been denied her rights numerous times by the CV zoning process and it's officials. 

Mr. Macsherry and the town are still not giving an accurate accounting of their zoning fiasco, and I will get into that soon comparing Mr. Hirschey's comments and Mr. Macsherry's to the actual facts in the event.  They are still in spin mode.

And there are FACTS... because fortunately there are two  Steve Weed videos of this zoning mess as well as other solid documentation.  You can see the planning board meeting where all this started at this link of the 7/10/13 CV planning board meeting. 

http://www.steveweedproductions.com/TOCV2013.php

Set the time slider to about 32:00 and you can see the board discuss  for nearly 20 minutes and appear fully ready to allow a use that is not allowed in the River Front Dist.  And to boot they have the law right in front, of them, the law THEY WROTE, and never catch  that they are about to allow a prohibited use that is defined as not allowed in a very easy to read clear table 8 on page 12 of our zoning.  Commercial solar arrays of this size are very clearly NOT ALLOWED in the River Front Dist.  These are the same people we have been repeatedly told are the "zoning experts" who wrote the new zoning to save us from BP in the Art. X process.  The other video is 8/14/13 where I speak to the planning board about this mess and complain, and then there is follow up discussion.

Which brings me to this point on a very confusing quote in this article at the end by CV Town Supervisor Urban Hirschey.  I am still trying to contact the WDT to see if this is a mis-quote or mis- print because if it is not this is REALLY disturbing!!! My jaw hit the floor when I read this!

"Town Supervisor Urban C. Hirschey said that the Town Council has tried to stay abreast of the situation. He referred to pages 11 and 55 of the new zoning ordinance as proof the proposed solar array is allowed. "

First of all it's not page 11 but page 12 or Table 8 were the issue is.  It is a clear table outlining uses allowed and not allowed etc.  If Mr. Hirschey is quoted correctly saying the solar array is allowed, then he is clearly in very serious error and  worse doesn't grasp the law he has written.    Look at the Table below.  Mr. Alexander's solar arrays are a total of 1440 sq. ft. and proposed for the River Front Dist (RF)  You can clearly see by the large X in the appropriate box that such a large solar array is NOT ALLOWED in the RF Dist.   Page 55 Hirschey quotes is only general guidelines for solar structures.  Table 8 is what matters and where the problem real exists.

 Scroll across from solar arrays over 100 sq. ft. and scroll down from the FR Dist. and you will see they are not allowed.  The proposed array is NOT a roof mounted or ground based residential array.  Hirschey is WRONG!

I will give Hirschey the benefit of the doubt for now.  But  if Mr. Hirschey has NOT been mis- quoted and truly believes this,  then it is a rather stunning statement and  is additional verification the town and it's supervisor  do not have a grip on their new zoning law.  And this is the very law they have dragged us head long into the Art X process with insisting it will protect us from Art X and BP.

Is this zoning fiasco an important screw up with critical implications?  There is one way we can verify that.  Have you noticed if there is ANYTHING about CV or CV govt. in the WDT the other CV blogs JLL and Pandora's Box of Rocks are all over it before the sun comes up.  Especially JLL.  If there is a CV  article in the paper he is usually one of the first to comment in the paper as well as "Cape Blogger." Especially if it is about the CV govt.

But today so far....SILENCE!  Why?   Because as I have said for a couple years they have become the PR arm of the Hirschey govt, and are not credible on reporting on their government's actions and they KNOW how bad this mess is, created by the Hirchey govt. and what it might cost the town tax payer in legal fees. Not to mention the other implications.

So as I have said before...be very wary of what you read on the other CV blogs in regards to their favorite Hirschey govt.

I will be posting more on the comments in this article by town officials.