TURNER — Glenvale Solar proposed to the Select Board on Monday a tax increment financing district for its $17.3 million project on land owned by board Chairman Kurt Youland.

The company, with offices in Portland and Boston, is asking for a credit enhancement to bring more financial certainty to its operating expenses for the project. Taxes are the single highest line item in operating expenses, according to Senior Director of Corporate Development Lisa Raffin.

In 2021, the company bid into a state procurement and obtained a 20-year energy contract with Central Maine Power at 2.8 cents per kilowatt-hour, she said.

The company is proposing to develop a 25.9 megawatt solar array on about 195 acres off of Ledgeview Drive, where it will install about 45,000 solar panels, according to the company’s application to the Planning Board.

Municipal tax increment financing is a flexible finance tool used by municipalities, plantations, and unorganized territories to leverage new property taxes generated by a specific project or projects within a defined geographic district. Any portion of the new taxes may be used to finance public or private projects for a defined statutorily allowable period of time, according to the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development.

The municipality or plantation defines the district size, determines the amount of new taxes to be captured, identifies allowable public and private projects along with the term, with the whole proposal requiring local political approval. Over their term, TIF districts can return thousands to millions of dollars to a municipality. The projects financed may include anything from upgrading a road to adding a wing to an existing building or more, according to the state website.

Raffin laid out three credit enhancement agreement options for the board.

A 30-year term would collect $2.3 million, a 20-year term would collect $1.8 million and a 10-year term would collect $1.2 million, according to Raffin.

The company is flexible on the length of term of the TIF district, she said. She believes having a TIF district would also avoid any future debates over assessed values of the project.

A TIF agreement freezes the value of the property as it relates to state, school and county taxes, and whatever taxes gained above and beyond that frozen value over the lifetime of the TIF goes into the TIF fund, according to Glenvale consultant Raegan LaRochelle.

If selectmen support the proposal, residents would vote on the measure at the annual town meeting, at which LaRochelle and Raffin would be available to answer questions, LaRochelle said.

Without a credit enhancement agreement, the company might not receive financing for the project, preventing it form moving forward, she said.

“The reason that we’re here is to kind of partner with the town to make sure that we have all the tools in place to have the best opportunity to get that financing and be able to bring the project to Turner,” LaRochelle said. “And so that’s why we’re asking for your help in this regard. If we didn’t need to do this, then we certainly wouldn’t be trying to do it.”

Chairman Kurt Youland said the proposed project is on his property.

In previous meetings, selectmen had not expressed support for the TIF district.

There was no discussion among selectmen after the presentation.

They will make a decision after hold an information session with residents that has not been scheduled.

In other business, Town Manager Kurt Schaub reported that the Dec. 18 rainstorm was declared a federal disaster, so the town can now compile and submit final claims for a reimbursement, he said. The estimated damage is about $52,000.

Most of the damage was because of downed trees, flooded roads and downed power lines. The town paid for the repairs through its operating budgets.

Copy the Story Link

« Previous

FEMA teams help western, central Maine residents register for disaster relief from Dec. 18 storm

Next »

Poland man found not criminally responsible for brother’s killing