Wayland Historic District Commission advances solar guidelines to January public hearing

WAYLAND -- November 15, 2022, Wayland Historic District Commission advances solar panel design guidelines to a winter public hearing. The commission voted 4-0 Tuesday to accept the draft and schedule a public hearing in January or February, with members agreeing they can keep refining the document without re-noticing. Members pushed back on a suggestion from John Harper of the Energy and Climate Committee that the guidelines tout solar's financial and climate benefits; Desmond McCauley called that "overreach," saying the commission's job is "the aesthetic quality of what people are trying to achieve." Gretchen Schuler also disclosed that the state Department of Conservation and Recreation plans a 25 percent design hearing in January on paving the rail trail's remaining stone-dust section from the depot to Route 20, a stretch partly inside the historic district. DCR's Paul Jahnige has not yet filed an application.