HomeMy WebLinkAboutSecond Priscilla Jones LetterSecond Proposal for Installation of Solar Panels at 260 Church Street
My name is Priscilla Jones and I live next door to this address at 240 Church.
I am hoping, with some conditions, to be able to support Ryan Coholan’s new plan to forego putting solar
panels on his front south-facing roof and to put panels on back roofs and on a long side roof facing west
which is about 15 to 20 feet from my property line. This roof runs about 20 to 30 feet from a peak in the
front all the way to the rear of the house and is close to a long line of 10 Hetz Juniper trees that I planted
about 20 years ago and 3 large Arbor Vitae evergreens planted by Mr. Coholan 5 years ago.
However, I would like some key questions to be answered before the Old King’s Highway Committee
votes on the new plan. I have learned from on-line research and conversations with solar installation
company staff that when an inverter box that converts DC to AC electricity (don’t know proper technical
terms) is used, it is often placed on the side of the house and can make constant buzzing or hissing noises,
which I know I could not tolerate. But I was also told that this kind of annoying buzzing can be avoided
if the solar panels installed use new technology – micro connectors under each panel instead of opting for
an inverter box. One of my conditions for supporting Mr. Coholan’s new plan would be that his installers
use the new technology.
I have also learned from the solar installation companies that when panels are to be installed on a west-
facing roof near trees that the company usually recommends tree removal or pruning, but I am assuming
that Mr. Coholan will not be planning more tree cutting on that border. Unfortunately, his landscaping
plan for the front yard and a curb cut to the street for a new driveway was approved at a private meeting
with an administrator of the Planning Board to which none of the abutters were invited. It was later
noticed by that this plan portrayed all 10 of my trees as located on Mr. Coholan’s property, and I would
like the Planning Board staff to locate the plan and correct that major error, for the record.
No, thanks to my heavily treed front yard, this roof is not clearly seen from the street. But the regulations
for using alternative energy resources call for “minimal visual impact on the surrounding neighborhood,”
a point to be remembered if others propose solar panels on Church Street. The regulations also call for the
applicant to use “ground level solar panel mountings where possible,” so that would be another good
alternative for Mr Coholan and other residents.
Thank you for listening, again, to my concerns.
Priscilla Jones 12/13/23