Sandra Swanson, a resident in the Town of Stafford, will be leading a citizens group to look into solar farms and solar power plants.
Swanson said she hopes to have a group of people to help her and brief the Stafford Town Board toward the end of July.
“We have until February,” Swanson said, “but we should be ending it in January. There is a huge amount of information to look at.”
Swanson attended a Genesee Finger Lakes Regional Council meeting in Pittsford in May, and went to three sessions about solar energy.
“There’s a huge amount of information about solar and people all over the country to talk to,” Swanson said. “I think it [helps] us to get as much information as possible.”
In May, the Stafford Town Board passed a nine-month moratorium on solar farms and solar-powered plants in the town. The moratorium prevents solar companies from submitting applications for a permit to construct a solar farm or power plant within the Town of Stafford.
“We would like to commend the town for entering a moratorium,” said Dan Compitello, the zoning and outreach manager for Cypress Creek Renewables. “It’s a very good, solid path to take."
Compitello attended the town board meeting, held on June 12, to offer his services, representing some of the landowners in Stafford. He said he provides workshops for towns that are in moratorium or in the process of updating codes.
He said he would be happy to assist the town board with through the process.
“The first thing to do would not be to have the business man tell us how to do it,” Swanson said.
