With the uptick in the popularity of solar power in Central New York, the town of Van Buren has amended its building code to include solar photovoltaic systems.
The town board unanimously approved a local law outlining parameters and fees for solar panels at its May 5 meeting.
“We didn’t have anything that covered solar installations themselves,” Supervisor Claude Sykes said. “We were relying on our general building code.”
Sykes said the addition to the building code addresses the safety concerns raised by local fire departments and Code Enforcement Officer Dave Pringle. Homeowners who install solar panels will have to pay $150 for a permit and the fire marshal will place a placard at the electrical service meter noting that there is a solar photovoltaic system.
Sykes said the town approved two solar energy system installations in 2014, and the local trend toward solar power could lead to more.
“The Central New York Regional Planning and Development Board’s got a push on making solar a little more forefront in people’s minds,” he said. “All predictions are going forward solar’s going to be the preeminent thing because our power grid’s getting older.”
Sykes said solar could end up to be just a passing fad, like the brief popularity of windmills of a few years ago, but in any case, Van Buren is ready for more solar installations.
The town board also authorized Sykes to sign a lease for a possible solar farm on Kingdom Road. The site is across from the former landfill, and the land is otherwise unusable to the town, according to Sykes.
Pending review by attorneys, One Energy Renewables’ lease with the town will allow the company to install solar panels, “making the land useful and profitable for the town.”
The lease agreement is subject to permissive referendum.
