Solar Array Going To Lanesborough Town Meeting Floor
.jpg)
The Selectmen set the warrant on Monday for town meeting. |
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — Voters are being asked to give the Board of Selectmen the authority to lease land for a solar project.
An energy committee previously identified land on Prospect Street as a viable location for a solar array.
The land was purchased by the town to be the site of a senior center but that never came to fruition because fund sources had dried up.
Now the town is considering using that land instead for a 1.5 megawatt solar array that could provide about $58,000 in revenue per year.
However, that will need town meeting approval so an article authorizing the board to enter into a lease will be on this year's town meeting warrant while the committee continues working on a proposal.
"This gives the Board of Selectmen permission to move forward if they choose to move forward," Town Administrator Paul Sieloff said.
The article was a late addition to the warrant, which was nearly finalized on Monday. The warrant was mostly ready last week but there were a few questions Sieloff needed to deal with and articles that were pending.
The draft had a placeholder for a question that would provide $35,000 to continue the preschool program at the Elementary School. The program has been eliminated in the school's budget.
But instead, an early childhood services committee will be looking for $25,000 to revamp and relaunch the program in 2014.
"The agreement is that there will be no prekindergarten in September. Basically there will be a year off," Selectman Robert Barton said.
The childhood committee, which consists of Barton, school officials and a day-care provider, met last week to come up with the new course of action.
The Selectmen voted to put the article on the warrant and appropriate the $25,000 from free cash but if the Finance Committee recommends against using those funds, the Selectmen are prepared to amend the warrant. Monday's meeting was continued until Thursday — the day after the Finance Committee reviews the articles.
In other business, the Selectmen are reconvening the seven-member docks committee to continue looking at a dock bylaw voters passed at a special town meeting last year. The bylaw is creating confusion and neighbors are still arguing over dock placement. The committee will re-examine the bylaw and draft yet another proposal.
Last week, the Selectmen voted to place a moratorium on dock placements because of confusions with the law.
Also in other business, the Selectmen approved a new agreement with Charter Cable for services. Barton said the Cable Committee reduced the contract from the typical 10 years to five years after hearing many complaints about the service.
"There was consistency in that people are unhappy with the service," Barton said of a survey and public hearing the committee had. "We decided we would keep it shorter than 10 years."
Residents mostly complained about quality of equipment — such as high definition not being available in some areas — and lack of response time.
Barton said company officials were at those meetings and were surprised at the comments. He said the company could have a stronger focus on response times to issues and already that has improved.
The contract will raise rates for customers a couple of dollars, which will go to community television station to support educational programs.
Tags: bylaws, docks, solar array, town meeting 2013, town meeting warrant,
