Wind turbine hearing is pushed back to January

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A Southampton Town Zoning Board of Appeals hearing for a Shinnecock Hills couple seeking permission to build a controversial wind turbine on their property has been pushed back to January.

Marianne and Domenico Seddio were scheduled to go before the Zoning Board of Appeals at its November 19 meeting to seek an exception from town land use regulations that would allow them to build a 32-foot-tall wind turbine on their Bayberry Cove Lane property. They want the device to power their home.

The hearing was rescheduled for Thursday, January 7, at their request. The Seddios did not attend last week’s hearing and could not be reached for comment this week.

Town zoning regulations do not allow for the installation of the wind turbine’s energy conversion system in the Seddios’s zoning district, according to Marty Shea, chief environmental analyst for the town.

Ms. Seddio first applied with the Southampton Town Conservation Board to build the turbine on July 8. The town conducted a study in September to gauge the environmental impact of the proposed turbine, and held a public hearing on October 28 so town officials and the community could review the plan. A second hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, December 16.

The Seddios’s 2.2-acre beachfront property sits on wetlands and along the shore of Middle Pond, just off Shinnecock Bay. They have offered two possible locations for the turbine: one in the northeast corner of the property, near their driveway, and one in the southwest corner, near the shore. At a Conservation Board meeting on September 23, Mr. Shea said he prefers placing the wind turbine to the north.

The environmental impact study, conducted by Mr. Shea, concluded that the turbine, which would be built by a company called Urban Green Energy, would not significantly disturb the ground or surrounding vegetation. But it could prove a hazard for birds, including piping plovers, which are endangered in New York State and sometimes nest on the beach along Shinnecock Bay, the study said. It also noted that the turbine would be in full view of neighbors.

People living near the Seddios have expressed outrage over the proposed turbine, both for its possible impact on wetlands wildlife and for its aesthetics. Neighbors have filed numerous letters of opposition with the Conservation Board. A petition decrying the wind turbine, and listing more than 120 signatures, was sent to the Conservation Board on October 28.