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Kingston Planning Board seeks turbine bond agreement

Wicked Local Kingston|Kathryn Gallerani |June 30, 2020
MassachusettsZoning/Planning

While voted on as separate projects, the Planning Board wants to resolve the payment of a bond for the decommissioning of developer Mary O’Donnell’s three wind turbines before approving a solar canopy project on her property.


KINGSTON – While voted on as separate projects, the Planning Board wants to resolve the payment of a bond for the decommissioning of developer Mary O’Donnell’s three wind turbines before approving a solar canopy project on her property.

O’Donnell said Monday she has no problem paying the bond and was just waiting for the paperwork from town counsel, although she thinks it’s unfair to the applicant for the solar project since it’s separate from her turbines.

Town Planner Rob Downey cautioned board members that the two projects are separate even though O’Donnell owns the land for both.

“We really can’t hold this petition against something that was done in the past,” Downey said. “They are two separate petitions.”

The Planning Board …

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KINGSTON – While voted on as separate projects, the Planning Board wants to resolve the payment of a bond for the decommissioning of developer Mary O’Donnell’s three wind turbines before approving a solar canopy project on her property.

O’Donnell said Monday she has no problem paying the bond and was just waiting for the paperwork from town counsel, although she thinks it’s unfair to the applicant for the solar project since it’s separate from her turbines.

Town Planner Rob Downey cautioned board members that the two projects are separate even though O’Donnell owns the land for both.

“We really can’t hold this petition against something that was done in the past,” Downey said. “They are two separate petitions.”

The Planning Board continued the public hearing for a special permit and site plan for installation of a solar canopy over a 1,000 vehicle parking lot on her 48 Marion Drive property to 7 p.m. Monday, July 13.

NextGrid, a solar development company based in San Francisco, proposed to install a 3.4-megawatt solar canopy over the parking lot on her property. Plans for future development of the lot would have to be approved by the Planning Board.

Planning Board member Bob Gosselin said other solar projects require a decommissioning bond and raised the need for one in this case. If a bond is required under the town’s zoning bylaw, residents including Raboth Road resident Patrick Gavin want it to be enforced.

“Stop granting waivers,” he said. “We have rules for a reason.”

Senior project manager Daniel Serber representing NextGrid said it’s his position that it does not make sense to require a decommissioning bond for a solar canopy because it’s still going to be a permanent structure, with or without solar panels.

“We don’t intend to decommission this in 20 years when the solar portion no longer has a contract with Eversource,” he said. “We plan to keep it as a covered parking facility.”

Plans for future development of the lot would have to be approved by the Planning Board. Raboth Road resident Caitlin Gavin-Day asked that the board add as a condition of approval that there be no access to Raboth Road for future development. No objection was raised.


Source:https://kingston.wickedlocal.…

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