TOWN OF WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) – A proposed development in the town of Watertown could bring housing and a solar farm that uses grazing sheep to maintain the land.
A public hearing for zoning approval will be held Friday at 7 p.m. at the town of Watertown municipal building.
The project site is along Summit Valley Drive. Samaritan Summit Village can be seen in the distance.
The development could include a solar farm and sheep as part of agrivoltaics, the practice of using the same land for both solar energy and agriculture.
“If we can put solar panels on less than prime farm land and graze sheep or grow something around the panels, then that’s not as bad of an impact,” said Jay Matteson, Jefferson County agricultural coordinator.
According to a March letter to the town of Watertown from developer Mike Lundy, plans may include single-family housing along Spring Valley Drive and put the solar “at the rear of the parcel.”
In the letter, Lundy writes that creating solar development with a microgrid would help power the buildings at the Washington Summit complex and reduce energy costs there.
The letter says landscaping would help hide the fencing and solar panels, and using agrivoltaics, mainly sheep, would help graze and fertilize the farm land.
“There is a farm that is actually doing very well here in Jefferson County, renting their sheep to solar companies. I love entrepreneurship. It’s so great,” Matteson said.
Lundy said plans are in the early stages, and the location is subject to change.
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