Peekskill planning commission opens SEQR review, hears strong public pushback over proposed Campfield Reservoir floating solar

The Peekskill Planning Commission opened a public hearing on a proposed 1.68 megawatt DC floating solar array at the Campfield Reservoir (1000 Lindbergh Place) and voted to declare itself lead agency under New York’s State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR), beginning a coordinated environmental review.

Jason Angel, co‑director of the Ecological Citizens Project, and partner organizations outlined the project as a community‑owned, nonprofit‑led effort that they said would keep revenue in Peekskill. Angel cited lifetime figures the team provided: $645,000 in lease payments to the city, $1,100,000 in electricity bill savings, and a $1,200,000 food‑sovereignty fund, which the presenters said together would total roughly $2.8 million in local benefits. “Half of those electricity bill savings would be targeted at low and moderate income households to receive a deeper 20% electricity bill savings,” Angel said.

Technical and safety details were presented by d3 Energy and La Bella. Stetson Shavijin of d3 Energy described the floating photovoltaic technology and said the system uses HDPE floats and land‑based inverters and transformers; d3 noted remote monitoring and rapid shutdown capabilities. Mufura Chimanga of La Bella explained that the project is being treated as a Type I SEQR action requiring a long‑form environmental assessment and coordinated agency review with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Health.

Applicants also cited an independent Arcadis water‑quality review issued in March 2025. Angel read Arcadis’ conclusion to the commission: “based on our review, we do not see unacceptable negative water quality impacts as a likely outcome and believe that ongoing monitoring can be used to preemptively identify any impacts that could occur.” The project team said lease provisions would fund a stop‑gate between the two reservoir basins, additional fencing, extra testing paid for by the applicant, and a contractual obligation to remove the system and hold a decommissioning bond if monitoring linked the array to water‑quality harms.

Residents at the public hearing pressed the commission and applicants on long‑term contamination risks, microplastics, PFAS, and the possibility of fire or storm damage. “Our water treatment plant is not equipped to remove all of [microplastics],” said Peter Korch, who identified himself as a 25‑year Peekskill resident and said the savings figures are small on a per‑person basis. Several speakers urged the city to consider rooftop or parking‑lot solar instead of siting panels atop a drinking‑water reservoir.

Supportive public comments framed the project as one response to looming food and energy assistance cuts: a resident who identified himself as Marcus (in transcript as Marcus Bridal) said the project’s funds and discounts could strengthen “energy sovereignty” and food access for residents facing future federal and state safety‑net contractions.

Commissioners asked detailed follow‑up questions about contingency planning and monitoring: what happens in a non‑normal operation, the city’s backup water supply if contamination occurred, the estimated cost to remove the array (a quoted range of $300,000–$650,000 was discussed), and the size of any decommissioning bond. Applicants said they had raised $1.4 million in grant financing from the New York Power Authority, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and the U.S. Department of Energy and reiterated that no city capital would be committed at this stage.

The commission voted to declare itself lead agency for SEQR and to leave the public hearing open to collect additional written comments and to allow the applicants and staff to return with follow‑up answers. The commission and applicants agreed to post materials and responses on the city website for broader public access before the next meeting.

Votes at a glance: - Planning Commission declared itself lead agency under SEQR for the Campfield Reservoir floating solar project — motion passed by voice vote (motion: declare_lead_agency_SEQR; provenance: SEG 2548). - Planning Commission voted to keep the public hearing open and solicit further written questions and responses — motion passed by voice vote (motion: keep_public_hearing_open; provenance: SEG 2568).

What’s next: the project will proceed through the SEQR review with coordinated agency input (NYS DEC, NYS DOH and others). The commission requested written follow‑ups on monitoring protocols, decommissioning bond sizing, contingency operations if water quality were affected, and expanded public notification; no final site‑plan approval was granted for the reservoir project at this meeting.

Sources: Public presentation and Q&A at the Peekskill Planning Commission meeting; Arcadis report cited by applicant; applicant safety data sheets and permitting statements provided during the meeting.