OTISFIELD — More than 20 Otisfield residents, including planning and select board members, met at Otisfield’s Community Hall on Feb. 1 to talk about anticipated increases of solar farm applications. The meeting preceded a public hearing scheduled for Feb. 17 to review a draft moratorium and then a special town meeting to vote on it.

Last week Shelley Norton, land use planner from Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments in Auburn, was invited to present a summary informing Otisfield of how other communities in western Maine have handled the application and review process for solar farms. Her presentation was followed by a question and answer period.

According to Rick Micklon, selectman and deputy code enforcement officer, a moratorium will give officials time to develop an ordinance to be presented to voters at Otisfield’s annual town meeting in June.

One solar farm was approved for construction at Nutting Ledge on Route 121 in 2021. The 20-acre property will hold 15,000 panels and feed into the regional grid.

Micklon said Otisfield needs to create a process with review standards for the future as alternative energy sources increase in Maine.

“We anticipate more applications will be submitted,” Micklon said. “We need a process to review applications and site planning. We’ll hold five to six meetings to collectively draft a proposed ordinance, send it to the Planning Board and have it ready for voters at town meeting.

“At the Feb. 1 informational meeting we did two straw polls, first asking residents for a show of hands for an ordinance, which 100% were in favor of. Then we asked if they supported a moratorium on applications pending the ordinance, which they were also strongly in favor, with one dissent.”

The hearing on Feb. 17 will give community members their chance to review and vote on creating a temporary solar farm moratorium. If the moratorium is approved by planners then, a special town meeting will be scheduled for Feb. 24.

Both the Feb. 17 hearing and Feb. 24 special town meeting will be held at the Community Hall and start at 7 p.m.

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