TOWN OF TONAWANDA: Solar construction prompts code review

Local News

March 13, 2010

By Daniel Pye<br><a href="mailto:pyed@gnnewspaper.com">E-mail Dan</a> The Tonawanda News Sat Mar 13, 2010, 12:26 AM EST

TOWN OF TONAWANDA — Town leaders have put a freeze on solar panel development until they get a handle on where and how they can go in.

Councilman John Bargnesi said the town is eager to have solar technology play a part in the local economy, but also wants to make sure the development fits in with the surroundings.

“Right now you could apply for a permit and build one in front of your house and we couldn’t regulate it,” Bargnesi said.

The Town Council will hold a public hearing at 7:30 p.m. March 22 at the Municipal Building to impose a 120-day moratorium on solar development. That will give the town time to draft laws to regulate the technology, but Bargnesi said the entire amount of time probably won’t be necessary.

“I doubt we’re going to use the whole 120 days, because (town engineering firm) Wendel Duchscherer is, I’d say, three-quarter of the way through with the draft,” he said.

The law will cover three types of solar panel installation. Residential and commercial installations will likely be limited to roof-top installation, but special care will be given to companies looking to turn wider areas of land into solar farms aimed at generating a larger amount of power.

“Solar farms would have different regulation than, say, a business on Delaware Avenue that wants to put a solar panel on the roof of their building to alleviate energy costs,” Bargnesi said.

Regulations for solar farms will directly impact the recently renamed Riverview Solar Technology Park. The company has plants to develop up to 50 acres for solar panels, and Daniel Montante, director of TM Montante Development, said the company knew the town would have to create some new laws to govern how that is done.

“We were aware that the town had to work on some regulations,” Montante said. “This wasn’t unexpected to us.”

The only possible concern is the possible impact to the company’s timetable for development. Montante said the company is building out the solar technology in phases, the first of which is aimed at simply helping to power the existing 120,000 square feet of commercial space. As more tenants show interest, the powering capability can be expanded. But Montante said construction wasn’t scheduled to begin until summer anyway and is hopeful that the town’s new laws will help accelerate the area’s profile as a proactive advocate for solar development.

“We believe the town’s interests are aligned with our own interests,” Montante said.

Contact reporter Daniel Pyeat 693-1000, ext. 158.

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