WELD — Selectpersons agreed at their meeting Tuesday night, June 27, that work on a draft ordinance regulating commercial solar energy facilities will continue.
Selectpersons Dina Walker and Lisa Miller approved a six month moratorium on those facilities at a June 12 meeting. Chair Richard Doughty was unable to attend the meeting that was held on a different night than usual.
After listening to the tape of that meeting, Doughty said he had concerns about how the solar ordinance was to be approved. He also felt members of the board might have different views on the role of the Select Board.
It appeared from the tape, the intent going forward with the solar ordinance was that it didn’t need to go before voters for approval, Doughty said.
“Town Meeting and the voters constitute the legislative body, approve the budget, set the amount of taxes and approve ordinances that regulate certain activities,” Doughty stated. The Select Board is the administrative body, is supposed to implement ordinances, he added.
Selectperson Dina Walker agreed the town is the legislative body. “We are not just the implementers, we are the executive branch,” she said.
Weld has no charter, no written policy.
Any ordinance that applies to sections of the town differently has to go to the town, Walker said.
Based on her communications with Maine Municipal Association, the Select Board has duties to come up with policies, there are some ordinances it can pass, she noted. That doesn’t mean the opinion of the town isn’t taken, she said.
“There is a difference between what the board can do and should do,” Doughty stated.
Walker said she was fine with bringing the solar ordinance to the town, the Select Board had to agree on the draft — hopefully unanimously.
“Isn’t it our job as a Select Board to move this forward,” Miller asked. Now is the time to put the brakes on, see what the town wants, she noted.
Changes to the ordinance should be finalized before presenting it to the citizens, she added.
Doughty said he had spoken with someone at MMA earlier Tuesday, was given different information than Walker received.
The people from MMA might have understood the question differently, Miller noted.
A moratorium on solar came up two meetings ago after a citizen and Miller received letters about potential solar projects, Doughty said. He noted Walker suggested holding off on the issue for two meetings. The date of the next meeting had to be changed which Doughty couldn’t attend. He didn’t realize the solar issue would be addressed then.
“I have a lot of input on solar,” Doughty said. “I was discouraged you had proceeded, went ahead without input from me.”
The only place where there is a 3-phase line is on Route 156 coming into town, he noted. Solar can’t be put on single-phase, it costs about $900,000 per mile to upgrade, Doughty stated. An engineer from ReEnergy shared a CMP map indicating where there is solar potential, it confirmed Route 156 is the only potential location, he noted.
Capacity at the CMP substation in Wilton is seven megawatts, a project submitted in 2021 will consume five megawatts, another one is being proposed so there is no more capacity, Doughty noted. That further reduces the likelihood of solar projects in Weld, doesn’t mean Weld doesn’t need an ordinance, he said.
Those are excellent comments, types of things that should be in writing while reviewing the draft ordinance, Walker said. The ordinance would regulate commercial solar, would not regulate homeowners, she noted. “We need to start big and narrow it,” she noted.
“The moratorium gives us time to draft the ordinance,” Walker said. If the board decides not to follow up on the ordinance, the moratorium will end or it can be extended if more time is needed to finalize the ordinance, she added.
“I am encouraged to hear what you just said,” Doughty commented.
It was suggested that department heads be asked to provide input on the draft ordinance one at a time to get that department’s perspective before moving to the next.
Once that is done, Doughty proposed holding a hearing where citizens could give input while the ordinance was still in draft form.
Prior to the meeting, Doughty had invited former selectpersons to attend to share their insights about the role of the board.
“I always viewed my role as representing the wishes of the townspeople,” former selectman Joe Demers said. There may be conflict with what people think, the board needs to be able to discuss that, be open to what others think, he added.
“MMA is a great resource,” Demers said. “I learned you have to ask the right questions and choose your words carefully. If not, you don’t get the answer to what you want to know. Make sure you are dealing with facts, stay away from hearsay.”
Demers felt the board individually and as a whole should take more active roles at town meeting, let positions on articles be known and stand on convictions.
“The Select Board has all the responsibility, just a limited amount of authority,” former selectperson Tom Skolfield said. Attendance at Weld Town Meeting percentage wise is huge compared to nearby towns, he noted.
“The folks who show up make the decisions,” Skolfield stated. Those who don’t attend are basically saying they are happy with what is decided, he said. “You are the most unappreciated group in the state,” he noted.
Transparency is necessary, in the long run will be beneficial and keep the board out of hot water, Skolfield said. “Continue to have discussions like tonight,” he added.
Citizens came to the board with concerns about the solar issue, everybody researched it, came up with different facts, former Selectperson Nancy Stowell noted. “You are doing great, spending a lot of time, doing the research,” she said. “You are on the right track.”
Walker said she was a messenger, sharing with the board what she had learned. She came to feel there was a planned attack, could have brought the emails if she had known beforehand.
“We have sat, listened and taken in their opinions,” Miller said. “We are trying to do things for the betterment of the town. This type of attack, behavior was beneath what it should have been.”
Doughty said he thought it was necessary, getting input from those who have been on the board could help in determining the role of the Select Board.
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