BERNE—  A home solar installation not far from the Berne town hall has inspired some criticism. It has also led town officials to reflect on whether they need to develop rules and guidelines for such installations.

And, it has made the property owner, Anthony Campo Jr.,  disappointed that his free-standing, ground-mounted solar array at 1699 Helderberg Trail has provoked such a reaction. “It’s not just a little town we have to worry about,” he told The Enterprise. “What about the planet?

Linda Carman, a resident of Knox and a member of the Berne Historical Society, is worried about how solar panels may affect the appearance of the historic center of the Berne hamlet.

She expressed her concerns at the June Berne town board meeting last week.

She said the array — which contains a total of 40 photovoltaic panels and is about 12 feet in height — should never have been approved by the town. However, she acknowledged that nothing in the current town building codes or zoning  would require denying a permit for an array of this size..

Carman urged the board to consider regulating solar installations, especially in areas like the Berne hamlet. She contends they may detract  from the visual integrity of an historic setting. She gave the board a copy of guidelines for solar installations in historic areas, formulated by the  National Alliance of Preservation Commissions.

One NAPC guideline states, “Freestanding or detached on-site solar panels should be installed in locations that minimize visibility from the public right of way. These systems should be screened from the public right of way ... fencing or vegetation of suitable scale for the district and setting.”

Supervisor Kevin Crosier said the board would review the material and consider the issue.

Campo  was not present at the town board meeting but he spoke to The Enterprise earlier this week.

He said he was unaware that Berne hamlet is an historic district. In fact, The Enterprise confirmed, neither the state nor federal government has declared it to be one. The historic district designation is one conferred on the hamlet by the town. Campo says, “I don’t think three-quarters of the people in this town even know it’s an historic district.”

He further stated that Sunrun, the company that installed his solar power array, secures  all necessary permits from local authorities and assures compliance with all local and state regulations. So he left it to them to obtain on town permit.

Campo has lived in his well-kept 1820s home for 39 years.

“I love history,” he said. “But I have to wonder if Berne hamlet deserves to be considered an historic district. Sure there are two very fine churches and a handful of homes that their owners keep in their original state.”  But he feels that the historic character of the hamlet has been degraded over recent decades.

He says he would welcome efforts by the Historical Society to instill more pride and historical awareness in town residents.

He says he has  received no complaints since his big solar power collector went up in May,  not even from the people who live in the apartment building directly across the street.  “To the contrary, I have had lots of people congratulating me for doing something for the environment.”

Campo says the array could not be placed on the roof of his home because of the roof’s size and shape, and because a solar thermal unit is already there.  That unit and a multi-fuel stove inside the house complete Campo’s bid for independence from fossil fuels.

Invited to attend the most recent Berne Planning Board meeting, Campo described to its members his plan to plant a screen of arborvitae trees around the array,. The trees  will grow to a height of 15 feet and make the array invisible from the road. “They appeared to be satisfied with that,” he said.

His solar array is set back from the road and is partially screened now by an old and  large shade tree.

His utility meter has been continuously “running backwards” since the PV cells began grabbing solar energy and earning him utility company credits. “We’ll see how we do in the winter when there’s less sunlight,” he said.

The array is angled and positioned to face “perfect solar south,” he says.

In a conversation earlier this week, Supervisor Crosier told The Enterprise that the town did issue a permit for Campo’s solar array.

“Mr. Campo has done a wonderful job with his (historic) house. He certainly didn’t set out to make it look bad by installing his solar array,” said Crosier.

Crosier believes that, once the screening trees are in place, no one should have any reason to object.

He further said that when the town created the historic district, through a zoning ordinance,  it made its  boundaries contiguous with the sewer district boundaries. He said the ordinance does regulate “accessory use,” the addition of structures like sheds. But it contains no specific regulation of solar-power installations.

Home solar installation regulation  is something the town has to look at, just as it has previously considered and adopted regulation of small home wind turbines, Crosier said.

Town supervisor for 14 years now, he says he has seen many changes in technology as “green energy comes forward...Who knows where we will be even four years from now?” he asked.

“I applaud anyone who wants to help the environment,” Crosier says. But he concedes the town must try to keep up and regulate as appropriate.

“But we also have to be very mindful of how new regulation may affect property owners,”  he said.

He sees the Campo  property —- 1800s domestic architecture existing side by side with 21st- Century technology — as achieving an admirable fusion of the old and the new.

Signs for safety

Also  at the June town board meeting, Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple presented a roadside sign promoting awareness of bicyclists and walkers who share the road with cars.

The sign’s message is “Please watch for us,” illustrated with silhouettes of a cyclist and a walker.

“Summer means more cars, more walkers, more runners,  and more people on bikes on our roads,” Crosier noted as he thanked the sheriff.

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“What we are seeing in the Hilltowns is a reemergence of people who ride their bicycles up here.” He added that on Thursdays,  a group of as many as 70 people can be found swimming Thompson Lake and then running and biking on area roads as they train for triathlons.

Craig Angard, an East Berne resident and cycling enthusiast who first proposed such a sign and was on hand for its unveiling, said, ”We want to give people the same protection we give to deer.”

The signs are available at no charge to any resident who wants to place one along their roadside frontage.

Summer plans

Also at its last meeting before summer begins, the board heard Kathy Wank describe this year’s Youth Council five-day program for grade school children; learned that plans are well along for the town’s annual free Summerfest to be held this year in the town park Aug.  27, and discussed the federally-funded summer work program for teenagers.  

“It’s a great program.” Crosier said, “but it’s hard to fill.”  Applicants’ families must have previously  qualified for some  form of assistance to  low-income families.

“A lot of the kids who work in the program go off to college and  come back and volunteer for the fire and ambulance services. It gives kids a sense of community when they’re able to work in that community,” Crosier said.

Other business

In other business, the board:

— Declared the structure at 18 Smokey Hollow Road unsafe, and granted the owner an  extension to remedy the property;

— Authorized the Youth Council to make summer hires;

— Authorized repair of the town compactor box for $1,125;

— Directed the town clerk to advertise for an office cleaning person for the town hall;

— Authorized a shared service agreement with the town of Knox for household hazardous waste day, Aug. 20;

— Directed a letter be sent by  the town clerk to Berne residents living on Thompson Lake, requiring them to verify their residence, boat, and boat motor size; and

— Declared as surplus a packer box that is no longer usable.

Corrected on June 17, 2016. Linda Carman is a resident of Knox.