Hammond Appoints Wind Law Panel, Langtry Upset

HAMMOND - The Town of Hammond now has a Wind Advisory Committee, but not without opposition from Town Councilman James Langtry.

Several minutes after Town Supervisor Ron W. Bertram announced the 10-member committee and called the meeting to a close, Mr. Langtry and fellow councilman, James R. Tague, could be seen arguing vehemently and pointing fingers in each other's faces.

"Go ahead, get me off this board," Mr. Langtry said. "You just said you'd get me off this board. You just like to run everything," he said to Mr. Tague. "You go behind closed doors and you make things happen. Why don't you go back to the Bay and have some more drinks with your friends."

The post-meeting outburst by Mr. Langtry, followed the announcement of the newly formed Wind Advisory Committee.

Committee members are to include Lenny Bickelhaupt, Allan P. Newell, Fred Proven, Steven Saferty, Michelle McQueer, Richard Champany, Don Ceresoli Jr., Merritt Young, Ronald Papke, and Rudolph Schneider.

Mr. Bertram also announced that Town Councilman Douglas E. Delosh would serve as an ad-hoc committee member, and that David Duff would be asked to serve as committee facilitator.

Mr. Langtry began his remarks by questioning Mr. Duff's presence on the committee.

"You mean to tell me that there is nobody smart enough in Hammond for the job?" he asked.

Mr. Bertram said that Mr. Duff, a Macomb resident who pays taxes in Hammond, would not be an active member of the committee, but rather a facilitator to keep the meetings running smoothly and efficiently.

Mr. Langtry then asked if Steven Saferty, reportedly a lawyer in Alexandria Bay, would be able to get to meetings.

"He's a good friend to somebody here," he said to the board, "That's why he's on there."

"You got some people on there that like to run windmills into the ground, some real good people to have on there," Mr. Langtry said. "And I see it's pretty well fixed with Concerned Residents of Hammond (CROH) people, that's for sure."

Mr. Bertram reiterated that the committee was an "advisory committee to the town board."

"All decisions and amendments made in regards to the law will be made by the town board," he said, adding that recommendations should be based on factual data and discoveries and that documentation would be expected. The supervisor also stated that all 10 of the people selected appeared on the lists of "at least three board members."

Each town board member, Mr. Bertram said, was required to turn his list of suggested committee members in to the supervisor by March 5.

The committee was chosen from an original pool of 22 candidates. Not selected from that initial list were Sonja Kocan, Nancy Chase, Jay Benton, Steven White, David Duff, Ann Root, Thomas Chapman, Jim Misenko, Mary Hamilton, Howard Demick, Larry Fuller, and Kelly Rogers.

Public comments were taken from Mr. Chapman, who commended the board for its selections, and from former town councilor Russell Stewart, who asked how the committee's studies would be funded.

"The original wind committee was also stacked," Mr. Chapman said, "and I didn't hear any complaints about that."

Mr. Langtry also chose to respond to Mr. Chapman's comment.

"The last committee was open to anyone who was interested and all meetings were advertised in the paper. It's foolish for him (Mr. Chapman) to stand up and say otherwise.

"You may not like me," he said in the direction of the remainder of the town board, "but at least I'm honest."