Willington grants Housing Authority permission to use town land for Button Hill solar project

The Willington Board of Selectmen on March 16 approved a motion granting the Willington Housing Authority permission to use town land adjacent to the Button Hill leased area for a previously discussed solar project and to serve as the primary contact for the project.

Tim Sadler of Earthlight Technologies, a presenter on the project, told the board that two separate permissions are required for the installation: utility approval from Eversource and execution of documents with the Connecticut Green Bank. "The process requires permissions from the utility, Eversource, as well as execution of documents with the Connecticut Green Bank," Sadler said, and asked the board to confirm that granting the Housing Authority permission to act as the contact would help resolve coordination issues.

Board members clarified whether the proposed array lies inside or outside the existing Housing Authority lease and discussed whether tree clearing would be necessary. The board agreed to use neutral motion language referencing "town land adjacent to the Button Hill leased area" rather than specific street numbers after GIS and assessor references showed conflicting addresses for the parcel. First Selectman Mike McCoux proposed the motion; following brief questions about signature authority on interconnection agreements and whether the motion implicitly authorized contract signatures, the board voted in favor. The motion passed by voice vote.

McCoux and the presenters said that if additional legal formality or signatures are required after utility review, the project team should return to the board for further action. Sadler and the Housing Authority representatives said they would forward communications to the selectmen to keep the town informed.