“I think it’s wonderful that Morgan Stanley is going green and going solar,” said Mayor Ron Belmont of the facility at 2000 Westchester Ave. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for the Town of Harrison. They’re going to do something that is going to be very profitable for them, hopefully. They could do a lot of things with solar panels.” The proposed accessory ground-mounted 821 kilowatt solar array would consist of 3,092 panels and be situated “immediately west of the headquarters building adjacent to the Hutchinson River Parkway in an already cleared area of the property,” said Christopher Fisher of the White Plains-based law firm Cuddy & Feder in a report to the Harrison Planning Board.
It would feature 22 rows, including nine rows of 230 watt panels and 13 rows of 290 watt panels, while not causing glare for drivers or a negative impact during construction. The solar panels would not generate electricity for the public.
Fisher described the project as a “unique corporate sustainability opportunity for Morgan Stanley and the Town of Harrison with no discernible impacts on the surrounding community.”
There are numerous benefits to the project, Fisher said, including millions of hours’ worth of clean, renewable energy, “no carbon emissions, smog or other air pollutants” and it would “lower carbon emission by over 400 metric tons annually.”
The solar panels come as a result of an agreement between Morgan Stanley and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, which provides funding and benefits.
The project was approved by the Planning Board and now goes before the Town Board for final approval. If given the go-ahead, Phoenix Solar would handle the installation of the solar panels.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Harrison and receive free news updates.