Zoning board tables Ainsworth ground‑mounted solar variance after neighbors raise visibility concerns

The Mendon Zoning Board of Appeals on July 23 opened a public hearing on an area‑variance request from David and Theresa Ainsworth for a ground‑mounted solar array at 1680 West Bloomfield Road, then voted to table the application until the board’s next meeting on Aug. 13 to allow the applicants to provide revised siting drawings and speak with nearby homeowners.

Jesse, the installer for the project, told the board the array is a residential‑scale ground mount covering about 42 feet in width with 24 panels and an 8‑foot maximum height. “It’s about 8 feet high,” Jesse said when a board member asked for height details. Theresa Ainsworth, who identified herself as a former environmental scientist, said the site is on almost 10 acres, is mostly screened by existing rows of trees and a pond and was chosen for aesthetics: “I did kind of my own side work myself and shot photos and angles,” she said, describing the vegetative screening around the proposed site.

Board members pressed on visibility and coverage limits under the town’s accessory‑structure rules. A committee member explained that the panel area was roughly 615 square feet and that the installation exceeded the 2% accessory‑coverage threshold, so a variance is required unless the applicants reduce the array size. The chair and members also noted two emails the board received from neighbors objecting to siting and said the applicants should meet the neighbors and provide alternative placement drawings before the board reconsiders the petition. The board made a motion to table the application and keep the public hearing open; the motion carried by voice vote, and the item was placed on the Aug. 13 agenda.