Lodestar Energy proposes 4.65 MW solar array on Nodd Road; company says energy will be sold to Eversource, town to get roughly $56,000 in taxes

Lodestar Energy presenters told the Simsbury Sustainability Committee on Wednesday that the company plans a 4.65-megawatt AC fixed-tilt solar array on about 19 acres of a 118-acre property on Nodd Road and expects to file with the Connecticut Siting Council by the end of the month.

The project, on land leased from Simsbury Real Estate Holdings and situated on a former golf course used for disc golf, would be part of the state Shared Clean Energy Facilities (SCF) program. Sam Malone, Lodestar project manager, said the company anticipates the Siting Council’s review to last about six months and that Eversource is studying interconnection; Lodestar expects an interconnection study to conclude in roughly a year.

“The solar will be 4.65 megawatts AC, and it's a fixed tilt system,” Malone said. “We are prepping to submit to them and plan to submit to them, probably end of this month.”

Nut graf: The proposal drew detailed technical and community questions from committee members and residents about visibility from Talcott Mountain’s Heublein Tower, wetlands and floodplain protections, wildlife passage and whether electricity generated will directly serve Simsbury customers. Lodestar and its engineering consultant, VHB, described measures they say are intended to reduce environmental impacts and said the energy produced will be sold to Eversource under the SCF program rather than sold directly to the town.

Project details and environmental safeguards

Lodestar said it will place panels at least 50 feet from Nodd Road, limit tree clearing to about 2.5 acres (noncontiguous), and…