Unofficial summary. This is a community summary of the town's official minutes, provided so the record is searchable and readable. It condenses the meeting and may omit detail. Some private individuals’ personal details have been left out. The official signed PDF is the complete record of authority.
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The Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Schaghticoke met at the Town Hall, 290 Northline Drive, Melrose, on Thursday, October 5, 2023.
Present: Chairman Ed McDonough, Rich Geddis, Kristin Griswold, Lettie Saheim, and Jason Shover. Also present: Deputy Town Attorney Kristin Pratt and Clerk Elizabeth Hale.
The Board approved the September 7, 2023 minutes (Saheim · Griswold · all).
Riverfront residence — hearing scheduled
Chairman McDonough presented, in the applicant’s absence, the updated variances sought to build a residence on the small riverfront lot near the Hudson River in Pleasantdale (a 1.9-foot westerly, 4.7-foot easterly, 10-foot front-yard, and 52-foot rear-yard variance). The Board scheduled a public hearing for November 2, 2023 at 7:05 p.m. (McDonough · Geddis · all).
ASD Schaghticoke Solar II and III — public hearings and grants
Engineer Jason Dell (Lansing Engineering) and Paul Kruger, Active Solar’s Director of Development, presented both projects on town-owned land in the Highway Commercial district: Solar II at the former landfill (863 Old Schaghticoke Road, about 14 acres) and Solar III at the highway garage (895 Old Schaghticoke Road, about 4 acres). Since the September meeting they had met on-site with Fire Chief George Conover, who requested additional gates for fire access; fencing and setbacks for Solar II were revised to meet the Zoning Code, so that only a use variance was needed there, and the applicant’s surveyor confirmed no private easements cross the Solar II site. NYSEG was notified as suggested at the September meeting.
During the public hearings:
- A family living directly across from the landfill site said they would be affected by the panels’ visibility and asked for sufficient screening and additional tree plantings; it was noted that DEC limits plantings over the landfill caps, and the applicant agreed to meet privately with the family to add plantings permitted by DEC.
- A resident said she was tired of solar farms and skeptical of the plan for end-of-life panel waste, preferring to see open space; another board member expressed sympathy with that view.
- A resident asked how the Town would benefit and how much acreage was involved; it was explained that the Town benefits from the lease revenue and that subscribers could see roughly a 10% reduction on their National Grid bills, with the local community prioritized. Deputy Attorney Pratt noted that DEC would review the entire landfill project. The Rensselaer County review found no county-wide impacts, leaving the decisions to local consideration.
The Board closed the public hearings (McDonough · Griswold · all) and reviewed both projects under the public-utility variance standard, finding a public necessity for safe and adequate electric service; compelling reasons to use these interconnection-proximate town sites (the landfill being a state-encouraged reuse); that generation is regulated by the Public Service Commission and feeds the grid; and that intrusion on the community is minimal, with committed visual screening subject to Planning Board approval. The Board granted the ASD Schaghticoke Solar II use variance (McDonough · Saheim · all) and granted the ASD Schaghticoke Solar III use and area variances (McDonough · Saheim · all).
Hemstreet Park residence — hearing scheduled
A homeowner in Hemstreet Park who owns two back-to-back parcels sought variances (a 20-foot setback from a proposed garage and a road-depth variance) in order to apply to the Planning Board for a lot-line adjustment and build a 30-by-40-foot dwelling facing South Pearl Street. The Board scheduled a public hearing for November 2, 2023 at 7:00 p.m. (McDonough · Shover · all).
The Board adjourned at 7:50 p.m. (McDonough · Geddis · all).
Respectfully submitted by Elizabeth Hale, Clerk.
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