Glen Rock September 5, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES II • Page 5 Council majority protests solar power initiative by John Koster Glen Rock Borough Council Member Art Pazan split from the rest of the governing body to vote “no” on a protest against a Public Service Electric & Gas solar panel initiative. Mayor John van Keuren won the support of the rest of the council when he criticized PSE&G for raising rates even after asserting that “every one of the panels placed in service generates value from the sale of its electricity and capacity into the wholesale electric grid, the solar renewable energy certificates that it generates and the federal investment tax credits. PSE&G monetizes this value and the dollars are returned to customers by offsetting the overall cost of the program.” Mayor van Keuren called this statement disingenuous since the utility was also raising rates. The resolution he read last week protested the increase -- and by extension, the solar panels -- to the Board of Public Utilities. Pazan disagreed. “The more solar I use, the less coal I have to burn,” Pazan told Villadom TIMES after the vote. Pazan said he supports solar energy both for environmental reasons and because solar energy decreases dependence on foreign petroleum. Pazan, a three-term Republican, added that he also had a practical reason: He said PSE&G owns the right to use utility poles for whatever purpose it wants to, so the objection to the solar panel initiative could expose taxpayers to a frivolous legal action. The utility company would have the law on its side if the matter came to court. Mayor John van Keuren clearly won over the majority of the council as he read the resolution the balance of the council approved at last week’s public meeting. The resolution noted that solar panels had been installed without notice or opinion from residents on main roads and neighborhood streets, and that where a large number of solar panels were installed in a row they were unsightly and cumbersome. The utility, the resolution said, had acted without thought to the aesthetic or quality of life effects on residents. “The Borough of Glen Rock finds it abhorrent that PSE&G is expecting its residential customers to finance a loan program for its business customers,” van Keuren said. “The mayor and council of the Borough of Glen Rock appeal to the Board of Public Utilities to not grant an increase to PSE&G that will be borne on the backs of our taxpayers who are already overburdened to make ends meet.” In other business, the council reached a strong, if tacit, consensus that enforcement of the no-left-turn rule on Rock Road should be even tougher than it is. Motorists are prohibited from making left turns across traffic to access parking places, but not everyone obeys the law. Jim Seaton, a life-long borough resident, spoke at the work session to point out that two motorists in particular seem to make abrupt left turns into parking spaces almost routinely, even though this is forbidden by law, signs are posted, and police sometimes write tickets. Seaton quoted one driver as saying, “When I’m in a hurry, I can’t be bothered.” He added, “I guess some people think they are above the law.” “We have been writing more tickets when people are doing it,” said Councilman Mike O’Hagan. Councilwoman Joan Orseck said that the illegal turns are still common. She said she had recently seen a man stop his own car and shout at a woman who had made an illegal left turn on Rock Road. “I would appreciate getting the (license) plate,” said Mayor van Keuren. O’Hagan added that he hopes parents will take the time to get up early now that school is starting, and would refrain from parking illegally so that children run between cars. He added that parents might even suggest that the children walk to school. “The last think we want is to have an accident or to have someone get hurt,” O’Hagan said.