The Rochester Planning Board is preparing to wrap up two prominent agenda listings come January: the solar farm project proposed for Middleboro Road and the Repurpose Properties age-restricted housing development slated for Rounseville Road beside Plumb Corner.
On November 12, the board discussed the Middleboro Road solar farm proposal filed by Pedro Rodriguez of Solar MA Project Management and scheduled the board’s first site visit for November 24.
“This one’s been kicked around for a long time before we headed to the hearing stage,” said Planning Board Chairman Arnie Johnson during a follow-up. “I would expect that we’ll have a decision on that by the end of January.”
The Middleboro Road solar farm project has been in the pipeline for nearly a year, Johnson said, even months before the recent filing of the Special Permit application.
Across the street from the Town Hall, the REpurpose Properties project now has very few remaining issues left to iron out, Johnson said.
“The board is mostly waiting for engineering,” Johnson told The Wanderer. “A few things, nothing major.
“We’ll probably be done with [the REpurpose Properties project] in January as well,” Johnson continued. “We’re waiting for engineering reports on both projects.” Johnson was referring to this project as well as the Middleboro Road solar project. “I don’t anticipate anything major coming out of them.”
Members of the Rochester Historic District Commission attended the Planning Board meeting on November 12 and confirmed that they held no concerns about the REpurpose Properties site regarding any matters under the commission’s jurisdiction.
In other matters, the Planning Board will conduct a site visit at the Mendell Road solar farm site on November 24 to sign off on the project as complete.
The board accepted an Approval Not Required application for the 40R project proposed by Steen Realty and Development Corporation to be located where Route 28 and Route 58 meet.
“And we’ll probably have a filing for the 40R development by January, too,” Johnson stated.
The next meeting of the Rochester Planning Board is scheduled for December 10 at 7:00 pm at the Rochester Town Hall.
Rochester Planning Board
By Jean Perry