Ritchie Enlists State Leader’s Support for Power Plant Upgrades Tied to Future of Psych Center

State Senator Patty Ritchie Tuesday led a tour of an Ogdensburg energy plant that’s poised for millions of dollars in upgrades and improvements that could help create and protect hundreds of North Country jobs.

Senator Ritchie invited her colleague, Senate Energy Committee Chair George Maziarz of Western New York, to join her and local officials, including Ogdensburg Mayor William Nelson and representatives of the St. Lawrence County Industrial Development Agency, on the tour of the Alliance Energy facility located on the grounds of the St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center.

Senator Ritchie also serves on the Energy Committee.

“I’m pleased to have Senator Maziarz’s help in encouraging private investment in jobs and a stronger economy for the North Country,” Senator Ritchie said. “Together, we are carrying the message to Albany of the importance of this investment, and of preserving and creating local jobs.”

The plant’s owner has proposed millions of dollars in upgrades to provide cheap heat and power to the Psych Center and a pair of nearby prisons.

(In the above photo, Greg Sherland of Alliance Energy is shown with State Senator Patty Ritchie and Senate Energy Committee Chair George Maziarz during Tuesday’s tour of the plant)