Jeffrey Davis

Practice Areas

• Project Development

• Telecommunications

• Environmental

• Energy

• Renewable Energy

Career

Jeff is co-chair of the firm’s Project Development Practice Area. He focuses primarily on large-scale development projects, including commercial development; renewable energy, specifically wind and solar; lifestyle centers; commercial greenhouses; and wireless telecommunications facilities. He has extensive experience coordinating environmental impact studies; obtaining zoning, permitting, project siting, and regulatory approvals from municipalities; and working with industrial development agencies. Further, he routinely advises clients on resolving liability and minimizing financial exposure involving contaminated sites.

Professional Memberships

• New York State Bar Association Environmental and Local & State Government Law Sections

Publications

• Barclay Damon LLP, “NYS Department of Tax and Finance's Proposed Solar and Wind Appraisal Model”

• Barclay Damon LLP, “How Amendments to the NYS Real Property Tax Law and General Municipal Law Will Affect Taxation of Solar and Wind Farms”

• Barclay Damon LLP, “Expanded Prevailing Wage Requirements in NYS FY2020-21 Enacted Budget”

• Barclay Damon LLP, “Telecommunications Act of 1996 Struggles to Keep Up with Technology”

Expert in these Jurisdictions

• New York

Languages Spoken

English

Experience

• Serves as lead counsel to the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency (OCIDA) on the expansion of the White Pine Commerce Park in Clay, New York, in support of the planned $100 billion Micron semiconductor chip-manufacturing facility. Coordinated the Final Supplemental Generic Impact Statement for the expansion of the commerce park and played a significant role in the site-selection process and negotiations with Micron on its selection of the White Pine Commerce Park.

• Serve as co-lead counsel to the SEQRA lead agency in support of the environmental review of Micron’s proposed $100 billion semiconductor chip manufacturing facility.

• Served as the lead attorney for a hydroponic greenhouse produce company in developing the largest glass-enclosed greenhouse in North America, including coordinating SEQRA compliance, zoning applications with two different municipalities, connecting a one-mile gas line and a nearly one-mile electric line to the facility, PILOT agreement with the Madison County Industrial Development Agency, and grants from the NYS Empire State Development (NYSESD) Corporation. Achieved the client’s development timeline by working with client and all involved agencies to identify environmental studies and concerns early in the development process, enabling the project to receive a negative declaration and all project approvals.

• Represented a global renewable energy company in its $125 million repowering project for an existing 50-turbine wind facility, including replacing all of the turbines. Worked with the local municipality on conducting the SEQRA analysis and environmental impact study and obtaining facility approvals for repowering, applying extensive research on avian studies and blade, ice throw reports, and setback compliance as well coordinating shadow and flicker studies. Received project approval with a negative declaration and secured a PILOT agreement incentive agreement from the Steuben County Industrial Development Agency.

• Represented a global renewable energy company in its $25 million repowering project for an existing 14-turbine wind facility, including replacing all of the turbines. Worked with two local municipalities and two IDAs on the zoning and project incentive process and obtaining PILOT agreements, height variances, setback variances, site plan approvals, and a special use permit. Applied extensive research and analysis on avian studies and blade and ice throw reports and coordinated shadow and flicker studies to receive a negative declaration under SEQRA.

• Served as lead counsel for the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency in a $300 million warehouse project, including coordinating and completing the environmental impact study and SEQRA analysis in an expedited time frame to meet the developer’s construction timeline.

• Assists clients with project development on the highly regulated Skaneateles Lake watershed, including obtaining zoning variances for home building sites.

• Represented a national wireless carrier in developing its network in the Adirondack Park, completing over 24 sites in 18 months.

• Represents national tower companies in aggressive build-suit development across New York State for a national wireless carrier.

• Represents a client on its status as a potentially responsible party (PRP) at the Onondaga Lake NPL site in Syracuse, New York, one of the largest lake Superfund sites in the country. This is a complex site involving over 100 years of industrial and municipal discharges to the lake; multiple PRPs and sources; several upland and tributary subsites; and several federal and state regulatory agencies, including the NYSDEC, the EPA, the DOJ, and the US FWS. Represents the company in settlement negotiations with the major responsible party over the allocation of costs for the remediation of lake sediments and NRD issues asserted by federal and state trustees as well as with NYSDEC and the EPA as part of PRP groups formed to address NPL subsite and past cost demands.

• Represents a major petroleum distributor and retailer in the Northeast on multiple locations across New York State on compliance with petroleum bulk-storage and spill regulations and the negotiation of administrative settlements with the NYSDEC.

• Completed environmental and real property due diligence in connection with a series of equity investment transactions in several solar energy facilities in Massachusetts and New York, and as local counsel, advised our client, the investor, of the legal and business risks and prepared permit schedules for closing.

Education