The Concord Planning Board granted site-plan approval and conditional use permit for a 5-megawatt AC solar photovoltaic installation on a capped landfill parcel at Old Turnpike Road, approving multiple waivers tied to landfill closure constraints.

Beth Fenstermacher, the city’s Director of Special Projects, said the City had pursued reuse of the underused capped portion of the former landfill for local renewable energy and selected Kearsarge Energy through an RFP. Fenstermacher said the project will provide lease payments and revenue to the city through a group net‑metering agreement and a pilot and that the city and developer limited improvements to the leased, capped area because of state closure‑plan restrictions.

Project engineers explained the technical approach for mounting arrays on a landfill cap: instead of driven piles they will place precast concrete blocks and low‑ground‑pressure equipment on gravel surfaces so they do not penetrate the landfill cap. Weston & Sampson said the array covers roughly 21.4 acres within a 52.9‑acre parcel, uses precast block foundations to avoid cap penetration and routes power to a pole on Old Turnpike Road for interconnection with Unitil.

The applicant said it has submitted the proposal to New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (DES) solid‑waste and has received initial feedback on the tier‑1b permitting pathway for landfill projects and that the DES and AOT (Bureau of Environmental Stewardship/AOT) reviews are underway. Engineers said conservative stormwater analysis found the existing southwest basin can accommodate runoff from the array and that the capped landfill membrane already functions as an impervious layer; the arrays and associated aggregate pads will not increase runoff beyond what the cap already produces.

The board approved multiple waivers from site‑plan requirements that could not be met given the capped‑landfill constraints; it also approved the conditional use permit under the zoning ordinance for solar collection systems and granted final minor site‑plan approval subject to precedent conditions including DES clearances, final grading, and recorded easement(s). Board members asked timing and interconnection questions; the developer said construction could begin in summer and finish in roughly six months pending final permits and utility interconnection timing. A member of the public asked technical questions about impervious coverage; the developer said the additional impervious surface will be limited to equipment pads, access road and foundations and is relatively small compared with the capped surface area.

Speakers emphasized the project’s role in the city’s renewable energy goals and the applicant said the array will produce energy for municipal customers, the school district and a third municipal/public off‑taker through financial agreements and sale of renewable energy credits (RECs). The planning board closed the public hearing and voted to approve the waivers, conditional use permit and minor site‑plan approval.