Fairfield's Historic District Commission made history Thursday.
The commission voted unanimously to permit the installation of 16 solar panels atop the Tide Mill building, located on Harbor Road in the Southport Historic District.
Solar panels don't exactly have a historic look to them, but when all was said and done, the commission chose to support Dr. William Kueffner's effort to be a little more environmentally friendly. Henry Backe, the commission's acting chairman, told the Fairfield Citizen on Monday that the commission did not have much of an issue with the panels because "the panels will not be seen from the bridge side or from the harbor when you are close enough to distinguish it from a dark roof." He added, "It is only going on one portion of the roof, which faces south and has a shallow pitch. From the water side, where it may be visible, it will be at least four stories high. The panels are easily removed if necessary and will not damage the historic fiber of the building."
Backe welcomes the "green" addition to a historic building.
"All the commissioners and alternates that were present thought this was an appropriate change and addition that did not affect the views from a public way," he said.
In a letter to the editor (A10), RTM district 9 representative Faith Dillon commended the environmentally friendly thinking, but questioned the precedent it was setting.
"As much as I see that the future for alternative energy is bright, I am concerned that we also value our past and protect the character that our historic districts provide. If solar panels are placed on one resident's property, how do we say no to others and then historic churches."
Kueffner, a retired pediatrician, said he is aware of solar panels on the ground at a neighbor's home, but he wasn't sure how the vote would go for panels on his roof. His neighbors wrote letters of support. Plus, he noted, the roof is black so the panels will blend in.
"I told the commission the only ones who will object will be the Canada geese," said Kueffner.
In 1958, he relocated his pediatric practice from the corner of Reef and Post Road to the Tide Mill building, which was once a tavern and a mill (started around 1730), and he's been living in the three-story structure -- in the penthouse, as he put it -- since 1986.
Kueffner said his daughter-in-law, who works for the Department of Environmental Protection's climate change division, influenced him to look into solar panels.
Kueffner said he's been interested in alternative energy for years -- even setting up his building to produce energy from the power of the tide, via a turbine -- but never went as far with that as he did in getting approval for the solar panels. Kueffner said he was deterred by the cost of the project and the abundance of regulations that had to be met.
If it weren't for two bridges, Kueffner's property (he also owns the parking lot across the Tide Mill building) would really be an island. In fact, before the bridges, Kueffner said the area was once known as Herdsman's Island.
"The colonists would bring their sheep there to protect them from the wolves," he said.
Does Kueffner live in the best spot in Fairfield, surrounded by water?
"I think so," he said.
Kueffner, who is a widower and has six sons, said everything is wonderful at home except when a Nor'easter hits. "We've had one serious flood, December 1992. The water got up to our knees in the furnace room," he said. Outside of the occasional flood, the Tide Mill building -- also once the property of the Wakeman Boys Club -- is a nice place to live. Kueffner doesn't rack up any big bills as far as air conditioning in the summer. He never turns it on. He doesn't have to. The sea breeze keeps the place comfortable. While he sometimes has to turn on the heat in the winter, he has 4-foot-by-8-foot windows on the south side of his apartment that serve to provide a fair amount of heat during daylight hours.
The Tide Mill building was a tavern prior to its current mixed-use (office/residential) status.
"We changed it back when we bought it and made it more like a mill building," said Kueffner.
There's a dock on the side south of the building, so Kueffner could technically visit his neighbors by rowboat rather than by car or by foot. Asked if he's ever rowed up to a neighbor's home to borrow some sugar, Kueffner said he never has.
"I'm a sailor," he said.
However, he did celebrate with a neighbor subsequent to the approval for the solar panels. Kueffner and a fellow doctor, who lives on River Lane, went to the Yacht Club for a Sunday lunch. READ MORE: http://www.connpost.com/fairfield/ci_13556458
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