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Proposed Sterling Road solar field falls under CT Siting Council jurisdiction; P&Z defers town rulemaking
Summary
The commission agreed June 15 to remove a solar‑regulations agenda item because the proposed Sterling Road solar field is under the Connecticut Siting Council’s jurisdiction for this application; commissioners will discuss solar regulations for future, potentially smaller projects at the July agenda.
Members of the Sterling Planning & Zoning Commission discussed a proposed solar field on Sterling Road and recommended removing the solar‑regulations item from the June agenda because, as recorded in the minutes, the proposed project falls under the Connecticut Siting Council for this application.
Selectman Patricia Massey asked what the P&Z Commission would do to create zoning regulations addressing logging, development, maintenance, vandalism, fires, and deconstruction of the solar field. The commission explained that the Siting Council "overrides any town regulations for projects over a certain size"; the transcript does not specify the size threshold. Because the Siting Council has jurisdiction for the current application, members agreed any town zoning now would not affect this project.
Commissioners decided to place Solar Regulations for potential future projects on the July 2026 agenda and to include discussion about distribution centers, data warehouses, and large commercial/industrial structures. No regulatory action concerning the Sterling Road proposal was taken at the June 15 meeting.
