Town of Rochester
Community Solar Project
The Town of Rochester Community Solar Project proposes that the Town lease two parcels of town-owned land to a solar developer, Borrego Solar Systems, Inc., to construct two solar farms to generate clean and renewable energy.
With a combined capacity of 11.2 megawatt (MW), the two solar farms will generate over $112,000 of land lease income annually for the Town of Rochester, and $2,446,608 over the 20-year lease agreement.
What is community solar?
Community solar is a large scale solar farm which subscribers can join to lease or purchase a share of the electricity production.
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Community solar is supported by New York State Energy Research Development Agency (NYSERDA), under the NY-Sun program. Community solar projects are becoming available across the Empire State, making the benefits of clean energy accessible to many New Yorkers.
How Does It Work?
1. Solar Installation
Solar panels are installed in a sunny place in your area.
2. Subscribe
By subscribing to a local Community Solar project, you’ll be helping bring clean energy to your area.
3. Save
Energy will be delivered to you the same way it always has been, from your electric provider. You’ll be credited right on your electric bill for your portion of the Community Solar project.
Source: NYSERDA
Why does the Town want community solar?
Tremendous Economic Benefit to Our Town
After diligent research and consultation, the Town Board of Rochester unanimously voted to secure the economic benefits of community solar for the Town and its residents. The lease agreement with the solar farms will guarantee revenue every year for the next 20 years. This revenue will help the Town to pay bills for services it provides to residents and can be used to offset taxes.
Clean, Renewable, Reliable Energy
Most of the electricity generated in the U.S. comes from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas. Extracting and using fossil fuels is expensive and harmful to the environment. By contrast, solar energy is free and readily abundant—if we could capture all of the sun’s energy shining on the earth for just one hour, we could power the entire world for one year. Learn more on how the Town of Rochester solar farms will benefit the environment.
What will be built?
Two solar farms, each up to 5.6 megawatt DC capacity.
The solar farms will be subject to the terms and conditions of the contract and subject to compliance with all federal, state and local requirements, and consistency with the Town’s Solar Law, as determined by the Town Planning Board. The lease agreements are available to the public upon request to the town clerk.
A Special Use Permit and Site Plan approval must be obtained from the Town Planning Board by Borrego. They will be subject to all federal and state requirements, such as environmental regulations and building codes. Learn more about the ecological studies that have been performed to ensure the Town of Rochester solar farms are environmentally compliant with federal and state regulations.
Once constructed, solar farms require very little maintenance. There is no need to build travel infrastructure to accommodate traffic. Electrical engineers will service the inverters and transformers on an average of four times a year.
Solar PV panels have a very low failure rate (approximately 1 in 10,000 per year), and are easily replaced. The panels require no on-site water or chemicals to keep clean. Natural weather conditions, such as snow and rain, occur with enough frequency and quantity to naturally keep the panels clean.
What about the visual impact of the solar facilities?
Unlike large power plants, solar farms have the ability to be visually integrated into the natural landscape.
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The maximum height of the solar panels are limited to 15 feet under the Town's Zoning Law
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To ensure safety, the solar farms will be surrounded by a seven foot fence with no sharp edges
- In order to limit the visual impact of the solar facility, large bushy evergreens will be planted in front of the fence to camouflage the site from the neighboring properties
Who will own the property?
This is a lease agreement. The Town will continue to own the two properties at 6140 Route 209 and Off Airport Rd.
The solar facility will be owned by an independent power producer. As per the lease agreement, the system owner is responsible for all maintenance on the property and the equipment. It is also their responsibility to remove all equipment at the termination of the lease and provide a complete decommissioning of the site.