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Village of Saint Helena - Public Hearing Regarding Solar

Thanks to the thoughtful policy already in place, solar cannot and will not change the face or character of Saint Helena.

The current policy protects and strengthens the community, and protects property rights.

Here's how the policy is working for Saint Helena:

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1. Only 2.3% of the Village is zoned to allow solar. See the brown? That's it.

2. Only one landowner family wants solar. That shrinks solar down to 1.6%.

3. The solar policy requires a 100-foot setback from the public road and has provision for fencing and landscaping. These rules are good.

4. Solar is a good neighbor: quiet, clean, attractive, and hardly any traffic after construction. The alternatives to solar are high traffic or unattractive, such as:

5. The landowner and developers have worked with Village staff and leadership since 2016. The process had been transparent and collaborative.

6. Solar is safe and clean--short term and long term. See NCSU's 2017 research:

7. Good process makes good policy, and protects property rights. The Village participated in a thorough process when considering and adopting solar in 2017.