Wayland Planning Board advances solar bylaw, weighs Route 20 zoning merger

WAYLAND -- August 13, 2025, Wayland Planning Board moves to draft solar and battery storage bylaw, weighs Route 20 zoning overhaul. Clerk Jesse Newberry, surveying bylaws from Concord, Natick, Weston, Lincoln and Sudbury, said a Wayland draft would set small, medium and large size tiers, require special permits, mandate decommissioning plans and address glare, noise and wildlife-friendly fencing, while coordinating with the Conservation Commission. KP Law has told the town ground-mounted solar is protected under MGL Chapter 40A, Section 3 and proceeds by right, but Chair Anette S. Lewis disputed that, citing a past case where panels effectively became a generating station. Director of Public Buildings Mike Fair urged caution on square-footage caps as efficiency rises: "Seven hundred square feet today gives you X amount of kilowatts. A year and a half, two years from now, that could double." At least 10 residential ground-mounted arrays already exist in town. The board separately debated merging Business A, Business B and Light Manufacturing along Route 20 into one base zone, and approved July 23 minutes 4-0 with one abstention.