Cheshire committee approves limited solar arrays for new schools, asks staff to study ground‑mounted alternatives

The Town of Cheshire committee overseeing the school construction project voted Thursday to approve solar arrays on flat roofs and on portions of peaked roofs that will not be visible from the primary public streets at the new Barnum and Norton elementary schools, and directed staff to develop alternative ground‑mounted options rather than proceed with solar carports.

The votes followed a presentation from Aaron of Johnson Controls, who summarized the fast‑track portion of an energy performance contract and financing bids. Aaron said the project team sought roughly $24 million in financing to cover energy upgrades including solar; Bank of America bid at about 4 percent on that financing. “The rough savings per year from those solar arrays by not buying electricity is $135,000 per year,” Aaron said during the presentation. “So in roughly 6 years, the savings would pay back the net cost of those solar arrays.”

Committee members said they supported generating energy savings but were concerned about visibility and the effect on the schools’ architectural appearance. After discussion, the committee voted to allow panels on the schools’ flat roof areas and on peaked roof sections that are not visible from Jarvis Street, Marion Avenue (Barnum) or North Brookdale Road (Norton). Members also said they did not support solar carports in the primary, visible parking areas and asked staff and the design team to identify screened ground‑mounted locations and present cost and production comparisons at the next meeting.

Why this matters: Johnson Controls told the committee that a typical complete array at each new school is roughly a $2 million project before incentives; the team estimates about 62 percent in reimbursements and tax incentives (roughly 50 percent from the school construction grant plus about 12 percent from…