ANSONIA – A solar farm developer is taking the City of Ansonia to court over what it alleges is an abuse of zoning regulations.
Vineyard Sky Farms Corporation and Hill Street Solar LLC – which are both subsidiaries of Allco Renewable Energy – filed a lawsuit against the Ansonia Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) on Jan. 8.
The lawsuit appeals a decision from that board last month to keep the developer from moving forward on plans to build a 0.99-megawatt facility on 135 Hill Street.
The company says that its plans are consistent with local regulations and state law, and that the board’s denial was illegal.
“In upholding the denial of the application, the ZBA acted illegally, arbitrarily and in abuse of its discretion,” the complaint states.
The Ansonia ZBA has not filed a response as of Jan. 13.
The lawsuit is the latest stage in a four-year-long tug-of-war between the solar developer and the city.
The Hill Street site plan was initially denied by the Ansonia Planning & Zoning Commission in October. The appeal of that decision was then rejected by the ZBA in December.
The Hill street address is next to a 1.99-megawatt farm the company is building at 31 Benz St.
The Benz Street application was opposed by the city, but the Connecticut Siting Council, which has jurisdiction over solar farms, approved it.
Allco first took the city to court in 2023, saying the city was setting up hurdles to block development after the citing council gave a green light.
The two sides reached an agreement in 2024. The agreement said the city would allow both the Benz Street project and the Hill Street project to proceed and that the company would pay $15,000 a year to the city in lieu of taxes.
The company also agreed to pay $40,000 to the city, which the city intended to divide among the neighbors to the developments. That has not happened due to the ongoing dispute.
The Hill Street portion of the solar farm project is a sticking point. Company officials said that because it is a small project it does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Connecticut Siting Council.
They said the locals have to approve it, as spelled out in the legal agreement.
However, in October, members of the city’s P&Z rejected the Hill Street application on a technicality. They said the city’s land use regulations identify solar farms as an accessory use on a property, not a primary use.
The solar farm under construction on Benz Street is an accessory use because there’s a house on the property, while the Hill Street property is all woods.
Allco company officials have argued that the Hill Street project is specifically mentioned in the legal agreement the city signed.
The Complaint
Allco’s complaint says that the P&Z’s technicality is irrelevant. It says that other parts of the city’s zoning regulations explicitly allow the development of solar farms.
In particular, it points to a regulation that allows “public utilities installations” to be developed in residential zones. The zoning regulations don’t define the term, the complaint says, but it states that the intent of the regulation is to allow utilities including solar energy.
Since the definition isn’t spelled out in the zoning regs, the complaint points instead to state law for a definition. State law defines a “public utility” as “the owner or operator of underground facilities for furnishing electric, gas, telephone, communications, pipeline, sewage, water, community television antenna, steam, traffic signal, fire signal or similar service, including a municipal or other public owner or operator.”
The complaint says that, under that definition, Allco is a public utility and should be allowed to put installations on residential land under Ansonia’s zoning laws.
During the appeal process, ZBA Chairman Natale Giaimo said he wasn’t sure that Allco met the definition. He pointed out that Allco plans to sell electricity to utility company United Illuminating (UI), instead of supplying it directly to the public.
“You are not selling or supplying these services to the public. You’re going to be selling them or supplying them to another public utility, if I’m understanding directly,” Natale Giaimo said.
The complaint says that that’s an irrelevant argument. It says that the energy ends up in the grid either way – and that it doesn’t make a difference if it’s sold to UI first.
“Whether the utility services are provided directly to the public or through a third party is not material for the purposes of the Zoning Regulations, the intent is to allow for the development of the infrastructure necessary to serve the electrical needs of the public,” the complaint states.
The complaint asks for its Hill Street site plan to be approved. It also asks for court and attorney costs to be paid by the City.
The Valley Indy left voicemails requesting comment from Allco attorney Michael Melone and Ansonia city attorney John Marini.