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Hampden planning board reviews solar-battery bylaw draft; public hearing set for April 22
Summary
A resident presented a second draft of Hampden’s solar bylaw (including battery standards, decommissioning, noise testing and insurance). The board discussed noise measurement standards, O&M inspections, annual insurance proof and draft cover-letter language, and scheduled a public hearing for April 22.
The Town of Hampden Planning Board received a second draft of a proposed solar bylaw that adds battery requirements, decommissioning and liability-insurance language, and clarifies screening, operations and maintenance (O&M) obligations.
Resident drafstman Gina Stavello opened the discussion by summarizing the changes she added—ridge-line provisions, battery requirements and a decommissioning plan—and asked the board for feedback and technical references. "I added the ridge bridge side original line size provision...and I added the battery," she told the board.
Board members focused on several technical and enforceability issues. They emphasized that noise testing should be done by a qualified, certified acoustical professional at agreed measurement points rather than using phone apps; a member suggested the National Council of Acoustical Consultants and board-certified practitioners as reliable resources. The board also discussed screening and fencing maintenance at the Mill Road solar site and agreed that O&M plans and a bond for decommissioning should be required, with periodic inspections and proof of insurance.
Members asked that the draft explicitly require annual proof of liability insurance and clarifying language distinguishing insurance and surety (bond) obligations. One member proposed inserting a yearly-insurance requirement into the special-permit conditions to make enforcement more straightforward.
The board agreed to prepare a cover letter explaining why the bylaw changes are necessary (mirroring the battery language used in prior submittals) and to circulate a final battery draft when it is available from Munson (Munson BioLite). The planning board set a public hearing for April 22 and anticipated that the hearing may be continued while outstanding technical details are obtained.
Board members also reviewed a state program that would assign a local government representative and convene multiple boards simultaneously to streamline large-scale clean-energy permitting; several members expressed skepticism about the process’s real time savings and noted it could add consultant costs for complex projects.
Next steps: staff will incorporate the board’s suggested edits (annual insurance proof, clearer O&M obligations, and screening maintenance provisions), circulate the final battery materials when received, draft the cover letter for the public hearing packet, and return the redrafted bylaw to the board for formal public hearing presentation.
