Skowhegan, ME Solar Energy: Panel Permits (2026)

The Town of Skowhegan regulates solar through its Utility Scale Solar Energy Facility Ordinance, adopted at a Special Town Meeting on August 24, 2021. Section 3(a) bars any Utility Scale Solar Energy Facility from being located in town without a Permit from the Planning Board unless the ordinance specifically exempts it. A physical expansion, a reconfiguration, or an increase in the Rated Nameplate Capacity of an existing facility needs the same approval as a new one. Routine maintenance or replacements need no permit.

The ordinance defines a Utility Scale Solar Facility as a solar installation that feeds power into the grid supplying the local utility, including any ground mounted photovoltaic project larger than 0.10 M.W. (ac). Residential and commercial arrays smaller than 0.10 M.W. (ac) are outside that definition. Section 3(b) separately exempts facilities occupying 800 square feet or less, but those must still meet state electrical codes and permitting requirements and any other Skowhegan ordinance that applies.

Under Section 5, the permit is processed as an added layer of Site Plan Review, so Sections II through V of the Site Plan Review Ordinance apply, and where the two conflict the stricter provision controls. Section 6 adds application items: a technical review fee set by the Board of Selectmen and paid at the time of application, a description of the owner and operator, a copy of any land lease, the connection agreement with the transmission facility, a land survey sealed and/or stamped by a Maine licensed professional surveyor, an operations and maintenance plan, an emergency management plan, proof of financial capacity, a Visual Impact Assessment, and a decommissioning plan.

Section 7 sets the approval standards. Structures, including fencing, must sit at least 100 feet from any existing residential dwelling structure, and no equipment can exceed 15 feet at its tallest point. The applicant must show an agreement with the local utility to accept the power before installation, and the Planning Board must find that the applicant has the capacity to finance, safely operate and decommission the facility.