School board getting solar energy presentation Tuesday

BY ANN GENADER
WEST MILFORD — Information about possibly putting solar energy panels on the Wallisch property to generate income to lessen the burden for West Milford taxpayers will be presented when the West Milford Board of Education meets at Westbrook School on Tuesday, Jan. 17 at 7 p.m.
Mayor Bettina Bieri and members of the Township of West Milford Council were invited by the board to attend the information gathering session and ask questions. Members of the public are also invited to listen and can speak during the usual public portion of the regular meeting, board President James Foody said.
Presenter/resident Joseph Ponzo of the Siemens Company will also explain funding options and ways the township could move ahead if it is decided to do the project.
Groups may not agreeFoody proposes placing solar panels on an isolated section of the Wallisch property that is not visible from Lincoln Ave. He said the remote site would not impact uses for the rest of the property. He believes $500,000 in revenue could be generated in electricity annually.
Representatives of Friends of Wallisch Homestead – a group first organized in 2013 and established as a 501C3 not for profit corporation in 2014 – discussed the project on Jan. 5.
Friends of Wallisch President John Hefferon asked members to attend the school board meeting. He said he does not oppose solar energy but some people with environmental concerns may not favor the project.
Town, school board controlAfter “a very productive meeting” of school board, township and county officials a year ago, the township put together an agreement giving stewardship of the 99-acre farmstead to the Friends of Wallisch, said Hefferon. The document is now in the hands of the group's attorney to assure that there is no liability involved, he said.
When asked about the agreement, Foody said the school board has not yet signed it and, to his knowledge, neither has the township, thereby leaving the fate of the property with the school board and the township.
At the Friends' meeting, Hefferon said there would need to be a stipulation that initial profit from the electricity would go directly to Friends of Wallisch Homestead for building restoration and making the site self-sustaining.
“The town and board of education want nothing to do with the property,” said Hefferon.
Foody again disagreed. He said that board of education and township officials, who jointly own the property, still need to discuss potential uses for the 99 acres left by John and Louis Wallisch.
Taxpayers may benefitHefferon questioned if “one of the newer school board members wants to make a name for himself” by suggesting solar panels on the Wallisch land. The solar project no doubt will happen somewhere in town and if Friends of Wallisch Homestead can profit from it, so be it, he continued.
Although Foody’s name was not mentioned, he is in the last year of his second three-year term, with a year in between terms.
Third generation resident Rick Ashley cautioned at the Friends meeting that if a solar project is not put on public land, a private property owner could create a solar farm – with none of the money earned from sale of electricity profiting taxpayers.
Proposing a long discovery process, Hefferon proposed an educational, on-site public solar display. He said a station could be set up with one or two panels that would be in keeping with educational requirements in the Wallisch will.
What do you think? Is putting solar panels on Wallisch property and earning money for taxpayers a good idea? Do you think it will take away from educational value of the property? Go to westmilfordmessenger.com and tell us.