Hamlin's wind-tower law has been struck down by a judge.

State Supreme Court Justice David M. Barry issued the decision on January 5 in a lawsuit brought by the Hamlin Preservation Group. At the core of his decision is the town's environmental review; the Town Board said that the law would not have a significant effect on the environment. Town officials "identified the relevant areas of environmental concern," Barry wrote, but the board "did not take a hard look at them nor did the board set forth a reasoned elaboration for its determination."

"The bottom line is it's apparent that the law itself was not opposed," says Hamlin Supervisor Dennis Roach. The town is talking with its attorney about possible options, including whether it will appeal the decision, Roach says.

The town board is meeting tonight (Monday) and Roach expects that town officials will discuss adopting a wind- farm moratorium. No law will be adopted tonight, since that would require a public hearing, he says.

Hamlin is the first town in Monroe County to pass a law permitting industrial wind farms. But the process generated a lot of controversy, based largely on the distance that the towers had to be from homes.

"If a town chooses to allow, rather than prohibit, industrial-scale wind development, it must, at a minimum, protect its residents' health, maintain the town's rural character, and preserve property values by establishing meaningful setback requirements and noise standards," said Arthur Giacalone, Hamlin Preservation Group's attorney, in a statement.  "The court's ruling will help to ensure those protections."