The arrival of solar energy production companies in Chautauqua County stirred that debate again. The latest battleground was the Pomfret Town Board meeting. After putting it off at its January and February meetings, the board opted to schedule a public hearing for a proposed solar farm on Farel Road. The vote was 3-1, with John Sedota voting no and Christopher Schaefer not present.

The hearing is set for Wednesday, April 13 at 5:30 p.m. in the town hall. It’s a required part of the solar farm installation process.

Around 20 neighbors of the parcel and other concerned citizens didn’t want to wait for a hearing last month, and showed up to talk about the proposal. This forced three or four spectators to stand, a rare development at a Pomfret Town Board meeting.

Not all of them were heard, as Supervisor Dan Pacos closed the public comments section of the meeting after about 50 minutes. Most of the people who did speak made it clear: they don’t want dozens of solar panels near their properties, for a host of reasons.

OBSERVER photo by M.J STAFFORD Pomfret Town Supervisor Dan Pacos, backed by a zoning map of the town, speaks during a meeting of the town’s board.

“We look out our window now and see wildlife,” said Russell Siragusa, who lives across the street from the site. “That’s what we bought … it’s going to be very hard to see panels outside my front door.” He also wondered if the solar farm could hurt the sale value of his home.

“Solar is great, it helps the environment,” said Julie McFarland, who owns property bordering the parcel. “But in Pomfret, is it our job to handle all this?”

She continued, “I am concerned that our farmland, which is fertile at the moment and will probably be needed in the near future with the shortages of food, is getting panels all over it.”

Pacos stated that he does not want to tell people what they can, and can’t, do with their land, as long as they follow the laws. “If they don’t want to farm anymore, we’re not going to tell them they have to,” he said.

Sedota said, “I have concerns about big solar companies coming in and buying up all the property. … I don’t want to see Pomfret become a large solar town.”

Speaking to McFarland, he added, “I share your concern. But I speak for myself, not the rest of the board.”

After what amounted to a lengthy philosophical discussion, the meeting turned to the technical specifications of the Farel Road plan. For the third straight Pomfret Town Board meeting, Kevin Bliss of RIC Energy attended to advocate his company’s plan.

Asked about a vegetation buffer to shield the panels from view, Bliss said the company would plant “fairly fleshed out” conifer trees, from six to eight feet high at planting time, in a double row.

He said setbacks of equipment from the property lines were increased at the town’s request. The equipment will now be at least 312 feet from Farel Road, for example.

As to why his company chose that spot, Bliss said it is available and the energy generated there can easily be put into the power system. He said that remote sites for solar farms don’t work out, as they are too far from power infrastructure.

Bliss and the board members wound up poring over a map of the site. They drew in a couple of changes that had not been made. As this went on, audience members talked among themselves, occasionally trying to get the attention of Bliss and/or board members to make points. Pacos had to call for order a couple of times.

Although Bliss began his presentation with a brief, impromptu speech to the audience, he later told it that he was ultimately there to show his plans to the board, not the crowd.

Before agreeing to schedule the public hearing, the board asked Bliss to provide the town with a formally revised project packet. This is supposed to include street views and planting schemes. The packet will be available at town hall for residents to view.