West Windsor may be among the first towns in the area with an income-generating solar panel “field” that would be used by PSE&G as an alternate source of power.
Township Council on November 9 approved the submission of a proposal to be part of PSE&G’s clean energy initiative called Solar-4-All. There would be no cost for the town to host or construct the solar panels — in fact, the township would receive an annual lease payment from PSE&G totaling between $15,000 and $22,500, said Marshall Cohen, the CEO of Princeton Power Systems, which is working with West Windsor on the application.
Cohen said the proposal is to construct a solar panel field — producing about 500 kilowatts of energy — on about two acres of the township-owned open cornfields behind the Princeton Junction fire station at the municipal complex. The total cost of the project is estimated to be $4.6 million, and Princeton Power Systems, which is based on Washington Road in West Windsor, would perform the installation.
The proposal also includes the possible construction of an educational kiosk at the municipal building or somewhere in the municipal complex, said Cohen.
While the township would not be able to use the solar panels as a primary source of energy, it would serve as back-up energy sources and eliminate the need for back-up generators for the buildings in the municipal complex, Cohen said.
The lease would be in place for 20 years. The solar panels, placed on the ground in the open fields, “can be surrounded by trees,” Cohen said. “You can do anything you want as long as you don’t block the sun.” The benefit to West Windsor is the lease payments and the ability to showcase its green initiatives.
Councilwoman Diane Ciccone asked whether there has been any discussion about bringing solar panels into the township to be used as a primary source of energy, and not just as back-ups. After this program, the possibility exists for “further development of more facilities directly used by the township,” in the future, Cohen responded, saying there are supplemental programs the township can look into for the future.
Business Administrator Robert Hary said once the PSE&G energy audit is complete, the township can look into its options. Cohen and Hary both said placing solar panels in the township for primary use would require financing from the township.
While Council President George Borek characterized the application to the program as a “no-brainer,” Councilman Charles Morgan disagreed, saying that he doesn’t understand why the panels would be placed on an open field and not on the roofs of buildings in the municipal complex. He also said that he believed the township should bond now for solar panels to see cost savings in the future, rather than waiting until the future, when the costs to install the solar panels might be inflated.
Morgan also questioned whether the township would own the solar panels at the end of the 20-year lease. If the lease is not renewed after 20 years, PSE&G would be required to remove the solar panels from the site, Cohen said. Morgan questioned why the township would negotiate a lease that would not end with the township’s ownership of the solar panels after 20 years.
“To me, it’s not a no-brainer to put solar panels in a field when they should be going on roofs,” he said, pointing out that the cornfield in the municipal complex was set aside for the expansion of the municipal center, if needed in the future.
Hary and Cohen explained that the solar panels would be too large to be placed on roofs, and that engineering would not allow the panels to be placed in detention basins — another idea proposed by Morgan. Cohen also said that the municipal complex would be the site that would be the least invasive to the township’s residents.
Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh said officials can look into more options in the future.
Morgan, however, said he felt it was important that the township compare the proposal with another before agreeing to send in the application. He urged that the townshipseek assurance that the application will not require the town to commit to the program if it is selected. “We need to make a cost benefit analysis of our alternatives.”
Hsueh said that if the application is accepted, West Windsor can not move forward until approved by council, at which time a cost benefit analysis can be done. “Once we get selected, there will still be more discussions and more specific details.”
Councilwoman Linda Geevers argued that the lease money the township receives can be saved into a “pot of money” and used for furthering West Windsor’s green initiatives. “We need to start bringing money into this township, and at least it’s a positive, sustainable initiative.”
