DEERFIELD, N.Y. (WUTR/WFXV/WPNY) – Boralex held its first in-person event since September of last year.

According to the company, these open houses are a way to provide information, hear feedback from the community, and answer questions.

“It really does open their mind,” said Darren Suarez, VP of Government Affairs at Boralex.

“It sort of answers questions they might have about what will happen before the project and after the project, and every time we have one of these events, we actually add additional boards because people have questions we didn’t think of, and so we’ll address those the next time.”

And while there are many residents who still disagree with the project, and are actively trying to stop it from happening, Richard Marko thinks people need to open their minds to the opportunity.

He has agreed to let the company lease a portion of his farmland, and he says that the financial help from Boralex is certainly welcomed and that it won’t affect his current farming operations in the slightest.

“I’m gonna be able to buy better equipment, I’m gonna be able to still raise my animals,” explained Marko, a resident of Newport.

“Right now, I’m feeding about 30 to 35 people with my animals on the farm, so it doesn’t stop the farming, it just changes the farming, and I hope that people down the road would understand that.”

And if you were unable to make it to the event, but would like to learn more, the informational posters on display will be added to the project webpage on boralex.com.

Also, Deerfield resident, Daniel Fusco, will be meeting with the Herkimer County Legislature later this week to see how Herkimer and Oneida counties can work together regarding solar projects, in the future.

Eyewitness News will sit down with Mr. Fusco next week to learn more about what was discussed and will bring you all the details.