Middletown solar farm part of new construction plan aimed at saving Port Belford

MIDDLETOWN — A former landfill in the Port Belford section of Middletown will soon be helping to power homes across the area and providing tax relief for residents of Monmouth County, according to officials.

The project is part of a larger redevelopment plan that Middletown officials hope will invigorate the economy of Port Belford and increase property tax revenue.

The Middletown Committee plans to sublease 151 acres at the former landfill to Port Belford Solar Farm LLC, a company owned by CEP Renewables. The parent power company has built solar farms in South Brunswick, Old Bridge and Mount Olive, as well as other sites in New Jersey and around the world.

The committee will hold a public hearing on the solar farm lease at its Monday meeting, which is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at the municipal building at 1 Kings Highway.

The 20-megawatt solar plant would cover about 42 acres of the former landfill, according to CEP Renewable plans submitted for Transition Renewable Energy Certificates, or TRECs, to the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. TRECs are credits that solar companies sell to other power suppliers in order to meet state solar energy requirements.

In addition to being a source of renewable power, the project will bring economic benefits to county and municipal governments, officials said.

Port Belford Solar Farm will pay $750,000 per year to lease the Belford property, to the benefit of Monmouth County taxpayers, county Commissioner Director Thomas A. Arnone said in an email. That money will be used for tax relief, he said.

County officials will lease the land to the solar developer for 20 years.

"The goal is to provide tax relief of up to $15 million for our residents," Arnone said.

The project will also bring property tax money into Middletown's municipal budget, said township Business Administrator Anthony Mercantante.

"Landfills are difficult to deal with, from a development standpoint," he said.

Closing an existing landfill can take years to prevent contamination to nearby areas. They are nearly impossible to redevelop, because structures placed on top of a landfill must not break the cap, or seal, that prevents rainwater from washing garbage and decaying material into the local water supply. Any building that would require a foundation for support could break the cap, and therefore is typically not permitted, Mercantante said.

"A solar array is really one of the few really good adaptive reuses… of landfills, because they don't require major construction," he said. "They're just solar panels on gigantic racks."

Once redeveloped, Middletown officials can then collect property taxes on the property, he said.

Preserving Port Belford's history

The solar farm will be part of a larger redevelopment project aimed at economically revitalizing the Port Belford area. Middletown officials are in talks for new mixed-use residential and commercial buildings, affordable housing, a parking deck and a public area, such an outdoor amphitheater that could have entertainment, Mercantante said.

The area will also have a center devoted to the region's fishing history and coastal science, he said.

"No applications have been made for that (redevelopment project) yet," said Mercantante. "It's… sort of conceptual at this point."

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The new structures would go in place of the existing Belford ferry terminal parking lot and be near the Belford Seafood Co-Op, a collective of fishermen that, according to The Daily Register of Red Bank, first organized in 1953.

Fishing no longer plays as strong a role in the area's economy as it once did, the township business administrator said.

Belford Seafood Co-Op "is a historic operation… and one the town has always felt was important to try to preserve," he said. "That's one of the reasons we incorporated their property into this, because it's getting difficult to compete as a commercial fisherman."

Port Belford doesn't support the kinds of large fishing boats that can dock in places like New York, New England and Cape May, he said.

"Our fishermen are limited in the size of the boats that they can utilize," Mercantante said. "Therefore, their catches never quite as large, and so it's harder for them to compete… Economically, they've struggled off and on in recent years."

The redevelopment project should change that, by bringing new stores, restaurants and sightseeing opportunities to the area, he said.

"Our goal is to try to help them generate revenue on their property that's not solely related just to fishing," he said.

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Amanda Oglesby is an Ocean County native who covers education and the environment. She has worked for the Press for more than 15 years. Reach her at @OglesbyAPP, aoglesby@gannettnj.com or 732-557-5701.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Middletown eyes solar, homes, new shops for Port Belford redevelopment