At the Hamlin Preservation Group's forum on wind power last week, some of the 100 or so people who turned out were obviously opponents of a wind farm being discussed for Hamlin, and others were supporters. But many seemed to be there simply to learn.

Discussions touched on industry practices, wind power's viability, the impacts of towers and turbines on birds and bats, litigation, setbacks, property values, and government incentives. Wind-power development would dwindle, said Keith Pitman, CEO of the Empire State Wind Energy company, without government credits and incentives.

A resident's question about whether wind towers would be confined to one part of Hamlin or would be permitted in several areas sparked a brief exchange between Linda DeRue - a candidate for town board - and Republican Supervisor Dennis Roach, who is seeking reelection.

If the town decides to allow the towers into agricultural districts, theoretically they could be installed across town, said DeRue, since large parts of the town are zoned for agriculture. But the town is developing laws that would establish an overlay district for wind farms, Roach said. That means wind towers would not be a regularly permitted use; before a wind farm could be built on a property, it would have to be rezoned.

While some Hamlin residents have said that wind towers aren't appropriate for Hamlin, a resident at last week's meeting disagreed: if Hamlin is a place worth living in, she said, people will live there, wind towers or not. Wind power is new, she said, and many people just haven't accepted it yet. She compared wind towers to the large power lines along Jefferson Road in Pittsford. Some people had raised health concerns, but people's property values haven't suffered. The reason, she said: people want to live in Pittsford.

Hamlin has hired an attorney to draft regulations governing wind farms in the town. He is expected to present them to the town board this month, and Roach says he hopes to hold public hearings in November.