By RICK MILLER
Olean Star
The Cattaraugus County Industrial Development Agency on Tuesday approved a 20-year payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement with Alle-Catt Wind Energy that requires no tax payments.
Instead, Cattaraugus County, three towns and three school districts will share $48.4 million in host community agreements over the 20-year term of the PILOT, IDA executive director Corey Wiktor said.
In February, the IDA approved $37.8 million in tax breaks for Alle-Catt, including $20.7 million in PILOT payments. The IDA had to rescind the agreement because proper notification of public hearings was not made to three school districts in the wind farm footprint in this county.
Negotiations between Alle-Catt, Cattaraugus County, the IDA and other taxing jurisdictions recently concluded and public hearings were held Dec. 3 in Farmersville, Freedom and Yorkshire.
The IDA resolution detailing the municipalities’ host community agreements with Alle-Catt calls for Cattaraugus County to receive $10.8 million over 20 years, Yorkshire, $412,313, Farmersville, $9.4 million; Freedom, $16.8 million; Cuba-Rushford School District, $315,674; Pioneer School District, $6.6 million, and Franklinville School District, $3.7 million.
The PILOT itself is a zero tax PILOT because all of the funding from the company, which is owned by energy giant Invenergy of Chicago, was placed in host community agreements.
In February, two IDA board members, Ginger Schroder of Farmersville and Joseph Snyder of Ischua, voted against resolution to approve financial inducements for Alle-Catt. The resolution approved on Tuesday was sweetened by about $10 million from the PILOT approved in February.
The county legislature recently approved an agreement with Alle-Catt in which the energy company agreed to forego a mortgage exemption worth about $7.5 million.
It is a long way from the opposition the Cattaraugus County Legislature showed in 2018 when it asked the IDA not to approve tax breaks for any large wind farm project.
The value of the wind farm in Cattaraugus County is about $618 million. The wind farm stretches over 30,000 acres in three counties — Cattaraugus, Allegany and Wyoming.
The turbines will be about 600 feet tall from ground to blade tip and are capable of producing up to 340 mega-watts. Thirty-eight of the 83 turbines will be in Cattaraugus County — 25 in Freedom and 13 in Farmersville.
Alle-Catt’s benefits in Cattaraugus County include $6.4 million in sales tax exemptions on $81 million in purchases and $60.8 million in PILOT savings because of the zero dollars PILOT.
Wiktor noted that Alle-Catt employs about 400 construction workers on the project. Alle-Catt has been clearing land and making access roads for construction.
In the spring, three very large cranes used to erect the towers and attach the blades will arrive in Western New York.
Over several months, the wind farm will be assembled. It will be connected to a 10-mile transmission line to the town of Yorkshire, where a facility has been built to connect to the grid. The wind farm is designed to power 134,000 homes. Alle-Catt aims to begin producing power before the end of 2026, Wiktor said.
For its work on the financial inducements for Alle-Catt, the IDA will receive more than $6 million — just under 1% of the value of the project. The first payment of $1,547,186, is due by the end of the year. Payments of $1.5 million will be paid to the IDA on Feb. 1, 2026, 2027 and 2028.
