YMCA Going Solar

On July 14th the Hillsborough Township Planning Board unanimously approved the application of the Somerset Valley YMCA to construct a solar array structure over their parking lot and on the building roof.

The YMCA is located on a 7.37-acre lot at 19 East Mountain Road at the corner of South Branch Road.

The new solar array in the parking lot will be located over the existing last three rows of parking - four free-standing canopy structures with light fixtures on the underside and a maximum height of 17-feet. There will be 20,400-square-feet of solar.

There will be an additional solar array on the roof of the building.

According to the applicant's experts, the YMCA will use all of the power produced, providing about 85% of their power. There will be no loss of parking spaces and some additional landscaping will help to buffer the view of the array from the nearby homes. At the request of the board the lower four-feet of the support poles will be painted yellow to make them more visible to members parking in the lot.

Their experts also said that this project will be eligible for a Federal 1603 Energy Grant for alternative energy projects for non-profits.

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From the Hillsborough Township Planning Board Agenda of July 14, 2011:

SOMERSET VALLEY YMCA (Fortin) – File #11-PB-13-MSR – Block 12, Lot 22 – 19 East Mountain Road. Applicant seeking Minor Site Plan approval and such other variances, waivers, and approvals as are necessary to permit the applicant to construct a new solar array structure over the last 3 rows of the existing parking at the rear of the parking lot, on property located in the R District.