After lengthy hearing, solar code adopted

TOWN OF MANLIUS – The town of Manlius has adopted a new solar code, paving the way for the Bowman Road solar project to move forward.
The unanimous vote came last Wednesday night following a lengthy and contentious public hearing featuring dozens of speakers on both sides of the issue. The hearing had been moved to the East Syracuse Minoa High School auditorium to allow for the large anticipated crowd.
At the core of the new solar code is a provision that gives the town board – not the planning board – authority to approve the site plan for any solar array proposed on town-owned property. The proposed Bowman Road array would be located on 17 acres atop the town’s capped landfill, which is currently a grassy hill to the west of the Clark Hill neighborhood. Because of elevation changes, the site is difficult to screen.
In February, the project was abruptly pulled from the Manlius planning board’s oversight when it appeared that planners would reject it. The following week, the town board made the proposed solar code public, including the provision that they would control whether the Bowman Road project would advance.
Those opposed to the new law were split into two camps: residents who live near the proposed project who feel the solar array would damage their viewshed and reduce their property values, and those who feel the town board is usurping the role of the planning board in the development process.
Those favoring the new code cited environmental concerns and the need for the town to act on climate and sustainability issues.
Before opening the public hearing, Councilor Elaine Denton provided an overview of the Bowman Road project, citing the financial benefits to the town. It currently costs the town more than $13,000 per year to monitor the capped landfill. The lease and PILOT payments made to the town would more than offset those costs, she said, and the town would save 10% of its energy costs, equating to more than $70,000 over the expected 25-year life of the solar array.
“It adds a non-taxable, unusable, polluted parcel back to the tax rolls,” Denton said. “It increases grant opportunities for the town of Manlius through NYSERDA Clean Energy Program which can be used for tree plantings and more.”
Joe Lupia, chairman of the planning board, was among the many speakers in opposition to the project. He questioned why the Bowman Road project was consistently awarded special treatment by the town board, given that the planning board had worked on every solar proposal that had come before the town and had never voted down a solar project.
“Your planning board is and has been strongly in favor of appropriate solar projects,” Lupia told the board. “Look at the planning board’s track record.”
The planning board had received correspondence from 106 neighbors opposing the project, he said. The town code requires a screening plan for solar arrays, but no plan was ever provided to the planning board by the developer, Abundant Solar Power, Inc.
“I personally contacted Melissa Clark of Abundant [Solar] and their engineer at Barton & Loguidice and requested that they provide plans for screening to meet the requirements of the law,” Lupia said. “No screening plans were ever provided. Instead, with the consent of the town supervisor, they withdrew the project from the planning board to circumvent that board and the adverse public opinion.”
Potential legal action
At the public hearing, attorney Dirk Oudemool told the board he had been engaged by neighbors of the project to help in their opposition.
“This proposal is not the result of comprehensive planning as dictated by New York State town law, but rather a result of your intent to force this project upon the neighborhood, and therefore, in my judgment to adopt it would be illegal as arbitrary and capricious,” he said.
Reached earlier this week, Oudemool said he was discussing with his clients whether to pursue an Article 78 proceeding against the town and whether to challenge the validity of the lease agreement between the town and Abundant Solar.
When that lease was originally passed by the town, there was no notice provided that it was subject to permissive referendum, which is required within 10 days. Attorney Tim Frateschi said the town board later corrected that error, but Oudemool argues that doing so at a later date makes the contract “a nullity.”
When the lease was originally signed, Oudemool said, the neighbors had assurances that they would be able to make their case against the project in front of the planning board and would have likely passed up on the opportunity for a referendum. With that process changed after the fact, they’ve lost their ability to pursue the permissive referendum, he said.
“You can be darn sure that today, with the proper notice, for sure there would be a demand for a permissive referendum,” Oudemool said.
Voices in favor
While residents in the immediate area appear unified in their opposition to the project, there were many voices in favor of the project.
“I would like to challenge you to take a big objective view of energy production. Not the view from one person’s living room window, or five people’s windows, or 200 people’s windows,” said Jennifer Staples. “The reduction of the use of fossil fuels is an imperative that we are already late to adopt.”
“I beg of you, don’t take a small view,” she continued. “Take the largest view you can as if the fate of the world depends upon you, because it does.”
Many of the voices in favor came from younger residents of the town.
Maya Chakin, 18, is a member of F-M Youth for Climate Justice. She and several other youths from the town spoke in favor of the Bowman Road project.
“As a young person who has been pursuing climate activism since my freshman year of high school, I’ve been proud and thankful for the steps this town has taken to become more sustainable,” Chakin said. “I am also constantly aware of how much needs to be done and how little time we have to do it.”
Because of the number of residents wishing to speak, speakers were limited to three minutes each. Following more than two and a half hours of public comment, the board took a brief break before coming back into session and unanimously adopting the resolution. Prior to the final vote, each member of the town board gave a brief statement on their reasoning behind voting in favor of the new solar code.
“Energy security is a shared responsibility and a common good, which we here are committed to promote and preserve. Climate change is a local issue impacting us here, today,” said Councilor Bill Nicholson before voting in favor. “We cannot be another generation that had a chance to do something about dangerous climate change but chose not to act.”