Newbury Planning Board Grants Solar Permit Two-Year Extension, Clears Storage Sale

NEWBURY -- May 6, 2026, Newbury Planning Board approves solar permit extension and self-storage transfer in May 6 remote session. The board voted unanimously four times on substantive matters, granting a two-year extension of a special permit for a proposed landfill solar array at 75 Boston Road through June 15, 2028, after applicant representative Eric McLean of Solar Alliance Clean Energy Inc. cited disruption to federal solar investment tax credits as the cause of delays. McLean noted the Conservation Commission had approved the same extension the prior evening and that key financial agreements with the town, a net metering purchase agreement, a land lease, and a tax agreement, remain unsettled. The board also approved the transfer of a special permit for a self-storage facility at 131 Newbury Port Turnpike to MP 131 Newbury Port Turnpike LLC, an affiliate of Boston-based real estate firm AEW Capital Management, in an all-cash transaction. A definitive two-lot subdivision proposal at 15 Central Street was continued to May 20, when a draft decision will be circulated, as an adjacent neighbor petition to close Church Street was separately received by the Select Board.