FARMINGTON — Selectmen are considering the formation of a Property Tax Stabilization Fund for revenues anticipated from the lease of land for a solar project.

Last year, voters approved leasing a portion of the former landfill by a nearly 4-1 margin.

The electrical power generation and transmission project, known as the Farmington Landfill DG Solar Energy Center, will lease 25 acres of the closed landfill at 152 Dump Road for $1,250 per acre for 20 years. Boulevard Associates will own, build and operate the solar array.

Power generated would go into the electric grid and not be earmarked specifically for Farmington.

“Boulevard Associates is an affiliate of NextEra Energy Resources,” Town Manager Richard Davis said in an October 2020 email. “The landfill project, however, is completely separate from NextEra’s Farmington Solar project currently under construction.”

At the July 27 board meeting Davis provided a chart showing yearly anticipated tax revenues over the course of the 30 year lease. The figures for years 2022 through 2051 show a total tax of more than $16.7 million.

“The first few years especially, it’s very substantial,” Davis said. “You’re not seeing the current year, 2021. Based on what was billed on April 1, that revenue is about $400,000.

“The bottom line is you don’t need to do anything this year for tax stabilization purposes,” he noted. “It’s all absorbed in the budget this year.”

A number of things could be done next year, Davis said. The town should increase its road budget by $200,000 per year, he added.

“The town should be raising half a million a year for roads,” he continued. “Wilton just did it. We’re not going to get caught up unless we do that, so that’s one thing. The other thing we could do is pay off all debt and save interest going forward, be debt free.”

The town garage will be paid off next year, leaving the new fire truck and the police station conversion, Davis said. Those could easily be paid off in a year, he noted.

Money could be set aside in a tax stabilization fund or allowed to lapse into the undesignated fund balance, he added.

“It’s good to at least have a process, a plan,” Selectman Joshua Bell said. If the town did pay off its debt it would eliminate an ongoing cost right away, he noted.

“If we don’t have debts our credit rating goes down as well,” Selectman Chairman Matthew Smith said.

If there is no debt is there a need to borrow, Davis asked.

The town will in the future, Smith replied.

Earmarking a portion for the undesignated fund and increasing overlay was suggested by Bell.

Looking at the town’s reserve accounts was an option given by Selectman Stephan Bunker.

Dropping the mil rate significantly was suggested by Davis, adding that could lead to an up and down situation for taxes. Setting a target mil rate for the next 20 years would give some real predictability for people, he noted.

A revaluation will be done in the next couple of years.

State revenue sharing will be affected after two years, with the town losing about $150,000 based on Davis’ calculations. The town receives over $1 million, so it should be easily absorbed, he noted.

It’s excellent to have this money coming, plan for it and have a list of options available, Selectman Michael Fogg said.

“The town has been very frugal, in some ways too frugal particularly with road infrastructure,” Davis said. “We should have been spending more all along.

“I think the town will continue to be frugal, just have a few more resources to use,” he noted. “Use them wisely.”

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