Town to consider one-year moratorium on commercial solar while state gives green light

HORTONVILLE - Just a day after New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that the largest community solar project had been completed in New York State, the Town of Delaware put the wheels in motion on Wednesday night to adopt a one-year moratorium on all future projects.

Ironically, the solar park which Cuomo was praising is located in the Town of Delaware on Baer Rd., two miles north of the hamlet of Callicoon.

“The Baer Rd. site is up and running and people are starting to get credits on their bill,” Delaware River Solar owner Rich Winters said yesterday.

Delaware River Solar is about to start construction of its second array in the town “in the next few months,” Winters said.

The second array is located on Hospital Rd., one mile outside of Hortonville.

The Baer Rd. project - which is 2.7 mega watts - received $1.3 million from the governor's $1 billion NY-Sun Initiative, which is part of Gov. Cuomo's mandate that half of all electricity consumed in New York will come from renewable energy sources by 2030.

The project will cut energy bills for more than 350 homes and businesses according to a press release issued by the state.

But the Delaware Planning Board - who attended Wed­nesday's meeting en masse - presented a written request to the Town Board to ‘consider repealing its commercial solar farm regulations and restricting solar land uses to agricultural and residential accessory uses…”

The Planning Board resolution went on to outline four concerns which they had with the current law, namely:

• The cumulative impact of multiple additional commercial solar farms would likely have a significant adverse environmental impact on Town open space and visual character and contrary to previous representations made by NYSEG and applicants to the Town, there is no meaningful practical limit on the number of solar farms that might be developed;

• Commercial solar farms raise significant issues with respect to neighboring property values;

• The processing of two existing commercial solar farm applications has proven the various planning and operational aspects of these land uses have not been fully appreciated or dealt with appropriately by applicants, indicating a need for more study…: and

• Commercial solar farms do not help fulfill the Town's vision of being an agricultural and tourism area.

“We have to stop this [solar development] before it goes too far,” Planning Board member Warren Blumenthal said. “Our sense is there is a feeding frenzy that does not conform with what is [the designed] use of the land.

“I'm not against property or landowners' rights [but we] have an obligation to protect what we have.”

Supervisor Ed Sykes said, “We respect your comments but don't necessarily agree with them. If we had 10 [solar arrays] would it affect tourism?”

Planning Board Member Dave Peters said, “We have two, that's enough. Let's get two completed and see what happens around town. We [the planning board] are already being hit with more [requests].”

“We have to function within the code,” Blumenthal said. “We still have to operate within the parameters [of town code]”

Councilman John Gain said, to his knowledge, the new solar array on Baer Rd. was going smoothly.

“When I spoke to {Town Building Inspector] Jim [McElroy] he felt he has taken everything [of concern] to Rich Winters.

“It's a fact that he [Winters] has talked to the contractors to catch up with the inspections,” Gain said.

Gain then made a motion, “to authorize for the Board's consideration, a local law to impose a one-year moratorium on commercial solar development.”

The motion was unanimously adopted, with Councilman Chris Hermann absent because he was called into work.

Town Attorney Ken Klein will craft the Local Law, which will be presented to the board at its next month board meeting on April 11, with a public hearing to be scheduled on May 9.

“It [the moratorium] is not personal with the developer, it is with the concept,” Klein said. “Even a year [moratorium] might not be enough to assess the impact.”

Winters said, “Obviously I will be at the public hearing.

“After Hospital Rd. project was approved [Planning Board Chair] Terry Zieres on future projects]?'” Winters said. “I feel a little bit like they [the Planning Board] jumped the gun on me.”

The Planning Board members were in agreement with the board's decision to consider a one-year moratorium on future commercial projects.

Winters said he has many projects ready to roll across Sullivan County.

“We are permitted for two projects in the Town of Thompson and hope to begin construction,” Winters said. “And we have a site in the Town of Liberty and hope to begin construction shortly.”

This Monday, Delaware River Solar will appear before the Tusten Planning Board to try and get approval for a solar farm in that town.

“If all goes well, we will start that project in mid-summer,” he said.

The Villa Roma, located in the Town of Delaware, also approached Delaware River Solar about building a solar farm.

“They are interested,” Winters said.