Glenville sets hearings on solar projects

PHOTOGRAPHER: File Photo

The Schenectady County Solar Farm on Hetcheltown Road in Glenville is pictured in 2015.

GLENVILLE – The Glenville Town Board will conduct hearings on Jan. 2 about two proposals to build solar energy arrays on town land.

The proposed locations are at the 73-acre town landfill on Barhydt Road and on a 5.8-acre parcel at Van Buren Lane and Pumphouse Road, both of which are feasible for solar projects, according to General Electric specialists.

The projects are part of Schenectady County’s partnership with GE to develop solar energy arrays on municipal land, with the energy generated providing credits for the towns against their municipal power bills. County officials announced the plan in the spring, and GE is working with municipalities to identify the sites that are most economically feasible.

GE is pursuing 22 parcels countywide for solar energy generation facilities.

Town Attorney Michael Cuevas recommended holding the hearings to gather public comment on whether the projects are in the public interest. If they are, the Town Board could vote to exempt itself from the town zoning laws.

Both of the proposed solar sites have been reviewed by the town Planning Board and have been granted preliminary approval.

Town Supervisor Chris Koetzle said the Town Board could make a decision at the Jan. 2 meeting if there is no public opposition to the plans, or it could wait until its Jan. 19 meeting to act.

GE is in the process of getting information from National Grid about how much it would cost to connect the proposed solar energy installations to the power grid.

The plan to develop solar farms in multiple communities grew out of the county’s shared municipal services study in 2017. The county is also developing solar arrays on county-owned land, with the goal of making county operations energy-independent by 2020.

Reach Daily Gazette reporter Stephen Williams at 518-395-3086,[email protected] or @gazettesteve on Twitter.