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▶Key Actions & Decisions
●The Town of Albion board voted in July to adopt Local Law 5 of 2026 for a moratorium on commercial data centers, after a June decision to schedule a hearing on a proposed 12-month pause. The July 13 minutes record four affirmative votes and say no data-center applications had been received at the time of the hearing.
●The discussion began in May, when town officials raised concerns about data centers’ water and electricity demands, heat and noise after an Association of Towns meeting. In June, attorney James Bell presented a proposed 12-month moratorium and the board scheduled the July hearing. The July minutes then record adoption. That establishes a board vote, rather than independently establishing the law’s filing, effective date, exemptions or full text; those details require the enacted original.
●The town also halted Union Cemetery plot sales while it sorted out its records and fees. On June 8, the board approved a 60-day moratorium on plot sales, subject to review at the July meeting. The minutes described a $40 plot price and burial-preparation charges of $325 for a full burial and $175 for cremation, while officials were still determining how many plots remained available.
The Town of Albion board voted in July to adopt Local Law 5 of 2026 for a moratorium on commercial data centers, after a June decision to schedule a hearing on a proposed 12-month pause. The July 13 minutes record four affirmative votes and say no data-center applications had been received at the time of the hearing.
The discussion began in May, when town officials raised concerns about data centers’ water and electricity demands, heat and noise after an Association of Towns meeting. In June, attorney James Bell presented a proposed 12-month moratorium and the board scheduled the July hearing. The July minutes then record adoption. That establishes a board vote, rather than independently establishing the law’s filing, effective date, exemptions or full text; those details require the enacted original.
The town also halted Union Cemetery plot sales while it sorted out its records and fees. On June 8, the board approved a 60-day moratorium on plot sales, subject to review at the July meeting. The minutes described a $40 plot price and burial-preparation charges of $325 for a full burial and $175 for cremation, while officials were still determining how many plots remained available.
In July, Highway Superintendent Michael Neidert reported that cemetery records had been found and updated. The board agreed to stop plot sales at that time and left a question about an earlier $40 purchase inquiry for the attorney. The September draft later described proposed cemetery fees and regulations to be prepared for an October vote, including a suggested $100 plot-deed transfer fee. Neither the summer record nor the September draft establishes that plot sales have since resumed or that the proposed new fees took effect.
These two actions addressed different questions: a prospective land-use pause for data centers and an immediate pause on cemetery plot sales while records and charges were reviewed. Residents considering either a development application or a cemetery purchase need the later adopted documents for current terms.
Sources: [Town Board 2026-05-11](https://townofalbionnyorco.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/2026-5-11-final.pdf) · [Town Board 2026-06-08](https://townofalbionnyorco.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/2026-6-8-final.pdf) · [Town Board 2026-07-13](https://townofalbionnyorco.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/2026-7-13-final.pdf) · [Town Board 2026-09-14](https://townofalbionnyorco.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/2026-9-14-DRAFT.pdf)
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Source-based reporting published 2026-10-07. Source events and document statuses are listed separately above.
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Related Town Board Meetings
Town’s September draft set energy-moratorium hearings and left cemetery fees for another vote
●Albion’s town board moved toward proposed pauses on wind, commercial solar and battery-storage projects in September, according to draft minutes posted by the Town of Albion in Orleans County. The draft records votes to schedule three public hearings for October 5; it does not establish that any moratorium became law.
●The hearings concerned Chapters 104, 105 and 106 of the town code: Wind Energy Facilities, Solar Power Farms/Commercial Power Projects and Battery Energy Storage Systems. The four members listed present voted in favor of each hearing. In August, the board had asked members to review the existing energy codes; the September draft describes moving ahead through the local-law process. It does not supply the proposed laws, their duration or any final adoption vote.
●October 5 has now passed. The September record also says the board moved its regular October meeting from October 12 to October 5 because of the holiday. This is a historical account of what the draft scheduled, rather than a current invitation to attend or confirmation that the hearings took place.
Town’s 2026 records changed clerk access, assessor and historian appointments
●The Town of Albion’s January organizational vote changed the clerk’s office schedule to 8:30 a.m.–4 p.m. Monday through Thursday without a lunch closure, and designated the Lake Country Pennysave and Orleans Hub for public notices. Those were changes recorded at the January 12 meeting, rather than independent confirmation of today’s office hours or every notice’s publication.
●The board also appointed Alexis Penna-Swan as town assessor for the remainder of the term ending September 30, 2031. The January minutes place the appointment within the town’s assessment-services contract with Orleans County. In August, the board approved continuation of joint assessment services with the county and Gaines.
●The historian position changed during the year. The board accepted Ian Mowatt’s resignation in February and appointed Sue Starkweather Miller in June, recording that the position is appointed annually. These records establish the board actions without supplying a current contact directory.
Town adopted higher water-use rates in April after winter discussions
●The Town of Albion in Orleans County approved higher water-use rates in April, following discussions in February and March about the town’s costs and the prices paid by neighboring towns.
●The April 13 minutes say the charge for resident usage above 500 gallons would increase from $4.88 to $5.59 per 1,000 gallons. All five board members voted to adopt the water-rate resolution. The record does not give an effective billing date or a complete rate schedule, so it cannot by itself establish the total on a household’s next bill.
●Wholesale rates changed as well. The minutes record increases from $3.75 to $4.46 per 1,000 gallons for Gaines and Ridgeway; from $3.62 to $4.28 for Barre; and from $3.39 to $4.28 for Murray. Supervisor F. Richard Remley had letters ready to inform those towns. These are the Town of Albion’s rates as described in its record, not the retail rates every customer of those towns necessarily pays.
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