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Town board adopts solar regulation law after public hearing; critics worried about cost and paperwork for larger projects
Summary
Board adopted a new local law governing solar installations, creating tiered review rules that exempt routine rooftop systems from planning‑board review but require review for large ground‑mounted installations; some residents called parts of the draft overly burdensome.
The Town of Mamaroneck on April 2 adopted a local law to regulate solar energy installations, establishing a four‑tier system that generally exempts small rooftop (Tier‑1) systems from planning‑board review but requires more detailed review, engineer reports and planning board oversight for larger ground‑mounted or commercial‑scale projects.
At the hearing resident Roger Weiss asked whether the law would add regulatory burdens and extra costs — for example, engineer reports — that could discourage installations. "When I read through the proposed law, a couple of things struck me... it seemed like we're creating a problem where problems do not exist," Weiss said, pressing the board to explain why additional reviews were necessary if few installations currently exist in town.
The board’s presenter (identified in the packet as the drafter) said the law came from sample language used by neighboring communities and was crafted to be proactive: it would allow the town to require site‑plan review for larger systems so installations would not be placed too close to residences or in inappropriate locations. The presenter said rooftop Tier‑1 systems would generally be processed with a building permit only, while larger Tier‑3/Tier‑4 systems would be restricted to specific zoning districts and would undergo planning review and environmental assessment as needed.
Before voting on the law the board adopted a negative declaration under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, concluding that the law would not have significant adverse environmental impacts. After that motion the board voted to adopt the law; the transcript records the motions, the negative SEQR declaration and the board’s adoption but does not include full, line‑by‑line roll call in the excerpt.
Town officials said they will review comments submitted by the county planning board, the Coastal Zone Management Commission and local reviewers and may amend the law in the future to reflect technical suggestions.
