BREAKING NEWS: Bar Harbor's Higgins Pit solar project in jeopardy

BAR HARBOR, Dec. 4, 2023 - The proposed town solar farm at Higgins Pit faces potentially insurmountable hurdles, according to several sources familiar with recent financial and regulatory disclosures.

Among them:

• A $1.1 million estimate by Versant Power for connection fees which was discussed at an executive session of the Town Council Nov. 17. The town had budgeted only $500,000. Town council vice chair Gary Friedmann questioned whether the cost to upgrade the grid should be borne partially by Versant.

• Whether to reduce the project to below 1 megawatt, to avert a required two-year study by ISO New England, the federally appointed non-profit which coordinates the region’s grid. The project, as originally designed, was 1.547 MW.

• Whether the town would qualify for a 30 percent federal subsidy because its vendor, Sundog Solar, does not have the necessary credentials. It only qualifies for a 6 percent subsidy.

• Continued challenges to access the site off Rt. 3 where neighbors of Seabury Drive have expressed concern about their road being used as the principal egress.

Besides the connection cost, a $3.5 million bond would be required to build the project.

The added connection cost - to generate two-thirds of the electricity originally projected - has raised serious doubts about the viability of the project, the sources said, and comes at a time when the town already faces significant fiscal challenges.

The town owns the 40-acre site in Salsbury Cove but only a portion of the land is usable for construction, according to a 2021 feasibility study.

Since 1972, when the town acquired the land, Higgins Pit has been used as a waste and sludge dump.

On Nov. 18, the QSJ challenged the town’s refusal to disclose the latest financial information publicly.

In a statement by email on Nov. 22, Town Clerk Liz Graves wrote, “We are concerned that portions of this document may be confidential and need to do a thorough review to determine which portions, if any, can be released. We expect to be able to respond within 30 days.”

The QSJ had asked Town Manager James Smith why the project, which has been discussed openly for more than four years, is now suddenly a matter held behind closed doors, in executive session Nov. 21, which was Smith’s first meeting as town manager.

The town’s statement added:

“The executive session discussion was held pursuant to 1 MRSA Section 405(6)(C ), ‘Discussion or consideration of the condition, acquisition or the use of real or personal property permanently attached to real property or interests therein or disposition of publicly held property or economic development only if premature disclosures of the information would prejudice the competitive or bargaining position of the body or agency.’”