BY ADAM ATKINSON
North Country This Week

CANTON -- The town board is negotiating an easement right of way of about .4 acres of town land near Hermon-Pyrites Road (County Route 21) with NYPA to allow the state to access the Moses-Adirondack transmission line for the state's rehabilitation project of the power line.

"This grant of easement is specifically for access for construction for this project. It is a permanent easement and we haven't asked to take the property in fee, so it is an easement," said Jeff Farrell from NYPA, who attended the board's Zoom meeting Wednesday, June 11.

Construction crews began working on rebuilding the almost 90-mile line. The transmission line travels from the Robert Moses Power Dam straight through the town of Canton to the NYPA substation in the town of Croghan. The state-run project, the Moses-Adirondack Smart Path Reliability Project, is expected to last until 2023.

The existing wooden h-frame poles carrying the transmission lines will be replaced with two taller, metal monopoles per h-frame and the new lines are anticipated to be able to carry up to 345 kV.

The existing lines were constructed in 1942 and have outlived their useful life, NYPA said on their website.

More on the project can be viewed at https://www.nypa.gov/power/transmission/transmission-projects/smartpath.

"What (the easement) will be used for is having our construction crews, our contractor Michaels and Northern Clearing be able to get equipment back into the MA lines, the Moses-Adirondack lines to help complete our 90-mile project, the Smart Path project," Farrell said.

There are two sections of town land NYPA has requested the easement for, totaling .4 acres. The land in question is sandwiched between county property NYPA is negotiating easements for as well and is accessed of County Route 21.

Farrell told Town Councilman Jimmy Smith that the easement would be permanent to allow NYPA access to the lines for annual inspections and any maintenance.

Farrell said NYPA would be restoning and hardening the road into the property so it could stand up to heavy equipment needed for the project. And, NYPA would be taking over maintenance of the road.

NYPA is offering a financial exchange with the town of about $500 for the easement, however negotiations are ongoing on that, said Town Councilman Tim Danehy.

At the meeting, town attorney Eric Gustafson suggested there should be some minor modifications to the easement he felt would better suit the town, including title guarantees for the easement from the town to NYPA.

NYPA crews are expected to start accessing the site to work on the line next year if the easement is granted.

The town board tabled further discussion on the easement to allow the town attorney to review the easement further and to continue negotiations on the issue with NYPA.