Plainfield Select Board Calls Special Town Meeting to Block New Solar Applications

PLAINFIELD -- October 28, 2025, Plainfield Select Board votes to call a special town meeting for November 12 to consider a six-month solar moratorium. The board acted on a draft warrant article presented by a Planning Board member, identified as Peter, that would halt new special permit applications for large-scale ground-mounted solar arrays and battery energy storage systems while the Planning Board revises zoning bylaws lacking any regulation of storage systems. A Select Board member cited legal counsel's warning that applications already filed cannot be retroactively stopped, saying "they are coming, they are queuing up." The special town meeting warrant will also include a prior-year $2,268 fire department bill for hose and ladder testing and a proposal to transfer ownership of a decommissioned 1992 International Pierce fire truck to the fire association for sale. The board separately approved a Class 2 Used Car license renewal for Central Farm and Garage and renewed Plainfield's membership in the Upper Pioneer Valley Veterans Services District.