Claremont planning board to hear large solar array proposal

A Boston developer is asking Claremont planners to clear a large commercial solar array for the south intersection of River Road and Calavant Hill Road, a project that could affect nearby views, traffic, drainage, and the city’s long-running debate over industrial land use and renewable energy.

The Claremont Planning Board will hold a public hearing Tuesday, May 26, at 6:30 p.m. in Council Chambers at City Hall on two applications from Kearsarge Claremont Solar LLC. Filing PL 2026-00006 seeks a conditional use permit, and PL 2026-00007 seeks site plan review for the same project on Tax Map 186, Lot 18, in the I3 zoning district.

That zoning classification matters because the proposal is being reviewed as a substantial commercial energy use, not a small rooftop or accessory installation. Under Claremont’s solar ordinance, a large commercial solar project covers 1 to 25 acres and 100 kW to 5 MW AC, while industrial solar runs from 25 to 50 acres and up to 30 MW. The board will be looking at whether the proposal fits those standards and whether the site plan addresses access, setbacks, drainage, and other local requirements.

The Planning Board is the city body responsible for reviewing development proposals through site plan, special permit, and subdivision processes, giving it direct authority over how a project like this advances. The hearing gives abutters and other interested residents a chance to raise concerns before the board acts on the permit and site plan applications.

Claremont has already spent years weighing utility-scale solar proposals, especially along River Road. A River Road-area array proposed in 2023 was described as the third such project since 2019, and a separate 4.99-megawatt solar array off Grissom Lane had already been approved earlier and was expected to be operating by the end of 2025. ISO New England identified that Grissom Lane project as a 4.99 MW solar PV installation interconnecting at 124 and 125 Grissom Lane, with a proposed in-service date of May 15, 2025.

Residents who want to review the filings can do so at the Claremont Planning and Development Department, 14 North Street, during normal business hours. The hearing will help determine whether this latest solar proposal becomes another approved energy site on Claremont’s industrial fringe or joins the list of projects the city decides to curb or reshape.