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Planning commission sets $1.208M decommissioning surety and approves final plan for 4.4 MW Mookau Solar project
Summary
The commission granted final approval for the Mookau Solar project and accepted a revised decommissioning surety estimate of $1,208,000 after review by the town engineer; the approval includes conditions on cemetery easement/perpetual care agreements and requires council action within a specified timeframe.
The Coventry Planning Commission on Dec. 17 granted final plan approval for the Mookau Solar project and set a decommissioning surety of $1,208,000, after the town engineer reviewed a revised cost estimate.
Dane Ardente, attorney for the applicant, and Aaron Ting, a professional engineer, presented the revised decommissioning plan and cost estimate for a ground‑mounted 4.4 megawatt‑DC solar array. Ting said the revised estimate incorporates the town engineer’s comments and includes costs for disposal of certain facility components, and recommended a bond amount of $1,208,000.
Planning staff confirmed the town engineer reviewed and accepted the estimate and recommended memorializing the figure in the project’s conditions of approval. The board voted to approve the final plan and to require the applicant to provide the surety prior to recording the final plan. The approval also included a condition requiring draft easement documents for access to two historic cemeteries on the site and that town council approval of perpetual care and easement documents be achieved within 160 days of issuance of a building permit (applicant presented drafts and agreed to the timing).
The board noted that leaving the two lots unmerged was a pragmatic choice related to ownership structure and that the applicant does not intend separate development of each lot beyond the solar proposal. The planning director said the project has reached substantive approval and the bond-setting was the primary outstanding matter for final plan.
