The Fort Fairfield Town Council has delayed passing a solar facility ordinance for another month.
Councilors Brianne Bubar and Pat Canavan wanted to avoid more delays, but fellow councilors Shane McGillan and Mike Greenlaw said they needed more time to review aspects of the document.
The Fort Fairfield Planning Board started developing the ordinance in 2023. The draft includes, among other stipulations, that no arrays shall occupy more than 5 acres of prime farmland, solar companies must provide benefit statements for the town, and abutters of the land would have to approve construction of a solar facility. Solar companies want guidelines to follow, Planning Board Chair Dick Langley said.
“What troubles me is the talk about anti-development, that this ordinance would be so broad and so bad that it would scare off developers,” Langley said. “The developers we work with [have] made clear to us that they would like to have a structure that they can look at and put a packet together, rather than come here and guess.”
While local zoning laws require site design reviews from the planning board, the town has no standards to specify requirements for solar systems, board member Rick Shepherd said. That puts the board in a bind.
Fort Fairfield has three large-scale solar facilities run by Novel Systems. Because there are no guidelines, the applicant had to return several times to make changes after conversations with planners, Shepherd said. Rules would make the application process simpler.
During the process of creating the document, the planning board held more than 10 public workshops, he said. The proposal incorporated public concerns, developer suggestions and guidance from the state. A final public hearing was held earlier this month for fine-tuning.
Fears that the ordinance would turn away developers are unfounded, Shepherd said, adding he doesn’t think those concerns represent the community’s feelings.
“I base that statement on statements made at our meetings, correspondence we have received, conversations I have had with people and posts I have read online,” he said. “I think if you had a referendum asking the town if they thought Fort Fairfield should have a solar ordinance, the result would be an overwhelming yes.”
Lifelong town resident Christina Theriault recounted her experience with a large solar facility planned near her home. Abutting landowners had a week’s notice before the development was approved. They banded together and worked with the planning board and solar company on a compromise: a smaller plant at a slightly different location that was approved by all parties.
An ordinance would provide severely needed guidance, she said.
“My understanding is that the presented ordinance is not to ban or forbid solar farms in Fort Fairfield,” she said. “The ordinance takes all parties into consideration, limits the size of the solar farms, requires communication to abutting landowners and provides guidance for the planning board to use when solar farms are presented to them to be approved.”
The council voted 3-2 to table the vote and will revisit the ordinance during its May 21 meeting.
Councilors also welcomed Fort Fairfield’s new town manager. Following an executive session, they voted to hire Aaron Huotari to the post. Huotari is currently Bangor’s public works director and will move north sometime in June.
Huotari, who was at the meeting, thanked councilors and staff and said he looked forward to serving the town.
In other business, Acting Town Manager Dan Foster said the next town budget is under development and he has started meeting with the budget advisory committee. The first public workshop will be held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 30, in the council chambers, he said.
Based on projected Aroostook County costs, insurance and school assessments, the town could see an increase in property taxes of approximately $233,000, or about 5 percent, he said. However, changes are yet to be made and more sessions with the committee and the public are planned.
Aroostook Waste Solutions board member Stev Rogeski said Executive Director Mark Draper will stay on another year. Draper is looking to retire but will help in the search for a new director.
Councilors also voted to approve the nomination of Dave Armstrong for this year’s Spirit of America Award, and issued a proclamation recognizing the week of May 4-10 as Professional Municipal Clerks Week. They thanked Town Clerk Neadra Dubois for her service.
The next regular council meeting is planned at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21, in the council chambers.
