An immense tree stump near a property border, once named the “Gathering Oak” by local hikers. The clearing now visible from the area has prompted renewed questions from residents about a project with some saying they only learned about it as the trees came down. (Submitted photo)

NORWICH - On the rolling hills of Norwich, there is a clear divide and a conflict written on the trees.

A 9.1-megawatt commercial solar facility on Upper Ravine Road moved through every required step of the Town of Norwich planning process nearly three years ago, almost entirely without any attention from the public or media.

The 120-plus acre clearing now underway sits along a nearby nature and recreation area, and for many residents this is the first time they have heard of it.

The Town of Norwich signed off on building the commercial solar facility more than two years ago.

A sign near a popular biking and hiking trail warns, “POSTED NO TRESPASSING FIREARMS IN USE,” contrary to a Chenango Greenway Conservancy sign on the same tree that reads: “Welcome Please Enjoy This Area Responsibly.”

Beyond the signs, crews are clearing and grading a once wooded hillside and former agricultural land for the project that moved through the Town of Norwich approval process in 2023 with almost no public response.

The project drew little public attention when it was reviewed in 2023. It sits beside land used for hiking, biking and outdoor events, including youth mountain biking competitions. The project was recently granted an extension to finish work by 2027 in May by the Town of Norwich Planning Board, after work was delayed.

The facility, proposed by Rochester-based Norbut Solar Farms, calls for two ground-mounted solar arrays totaling roughly 9.1 megawatts on a 144-acre site carved out of a larger parcel identified in town records as tax parcel 147.-1-8.1. Town environmental filings describe the property as undeveloped forested and agricultural land. Clearing of the site, much of it wooded, is well underway.

Norbut Solar applied to the town in September 2023 under three affiliated companies, NSF Norwich Site 1, NSF Norwich Site 2 and Upper Ravine Road LLC, with site plans prepared by BME Associates.

In its application, the developer framed the project as part of New York State's push to draw 70 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030, with power feeding into the local utility grid.The town's planning board took up the project at its Sept. 5, 2023. According to the minutes, the board voted to approve the subdivision of the parent parcel, classifying it as a "minor" subdivision rather than a major one. They then moved to have the town serve as lead agency for the environmental review. A public hearing was set for Oct. 2, 2023. No one showed up.

The Chenango County Planning and Development Board reviewed the project in September 2023 under General Municipal Law 239 and recommended approval with comments, noting that the developer would need a Highway Use Permit.

On Nov. 6, 2023, the board, acting as lead agency, issued a negative declaration under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) a finding that the project would not result in significant adverse environmental impacts and therefore would not require a full environmental impact statement.

One element of the approval turned on how the town read its own solar law.

The Town of Norwich's Renewable Energy Systems Local Law, adopted in 2020, requires a 150-foot setback from residential, agricultural and sensitive site property lines for commercial solar facilities.

In an August 2023 letter, a solar project manager asked the town's code enforcement officer to interpret that requirement, arguing that because the town has no zoning map and no officially designated agricultural parcels, the 150-foot agricultural setback should apply only along property lines where farming is actively taking place, not around the full boundary of any agriculturally classified neighbor.

The code enforcement officer adopted that interpretation, which reduced where the buffer applied. Planning officials said the original property was also owned by a town accessor, who leased it. The setback change was a written code interpretation.

When the current town accessor, Keith Reynolds, was asked about the project and if he had owned the property, he declined to comment.

The environmental assessment marked the project as potentially affecting wetlands and agricultural resources, including the irreversible conversion of more than 10 acres of agriculturally classified soil.

The form also notes the project would be visible year-round from publicly accessible vantage points, including during recreation, a point now plain on the ground, where the cleared hillside is readily visible from nearby trails. An 8 feet tall wall is expected to be built along the site in the future, said planning officials.

The project site is reached by Upper Ravine Road, just past the Chenango County Sheriff’s Office, a seasonal road.

The minutes also stated the improvements should come at no cost to taxpayers.

The Chenango Greenway Conservancy is an all-volunteer charity organized in 2006. They maintain a network of public recreation land in and around the City of Norwich, including a stone quarry and trails on West Hill that draw hikers and mountain bikers.

The clearing now visible from the area has prompted renewed questions from residents about a project most learned of only as the trees came down. One shared an image showing an immense tree stump near the border once named the “Gathering Oak” by local hikers.

The town planning board and Norbut followed proper procedures and open government recommendations, advertising the hearing publicly weeks prior to approval, the project was never hidden. Planning Board Chairman Ted Guinn and the town clerk quickly shared and provided all available documentation upon public request.

The Town of Norwich is also well versed in local land laws and solar projects and has a concentration of similar sites elsewhere. There are many established rules and policies in place to manage such applications.

Lead-agency notices went out to state and county agencies in September 2023. A public hearing was advertised and held that October.

Construction is proceeding under the approvals issued in 2023, and renewed in May 2026.

Read more about this in future editions of the Evening Sun.