Napa Valley College officials say their proposed solar panel array along Pope Street will be a “green” addition to St. Helena, but neighbors aren’t sure it will be a very pretty one.

The college plans to install the solar panel array along Pope Street north and south of College Avenue. The 528 solar panels, each measuring 40 inches by 78 inches, would offset over 50 percent of the college’s energy needs.

College officials say that over the next 20 years the array would save the college about $355,000 and offset 170,000 pounds of greenhouse gasses.

But some nearby residents who were invited to a public unveiling of the college’s plans last week are worried that the array will be downright ugly.

Pope Street resident David Capponi said he’s not opposed to solar power, but he’s worried that even with a fence around it, the proposed array is “not necessarily aesthetically pleasing.”

“I’m concerned that after a couple years, it’s just going to be a ratty chain link fence that people stuff cans in as they walk by,” said Capponi.

College officials say they’re open to ideas on how to shield the array from view. The initial plan calls for a six-foot-tall chain link fence screened by grapevines, shrubbery or trees.

At the larger solar array at the Napa campus, sheep are corralled inside to keep the grass from growing too high under the solar panels. College officials are considering leasing sheep to maintain the St. Helena array as well.

Neighbors were also concerned about some vines that would be removed south of College Avenue to make way for the panels. NVC Upvalley Dean Bonnie Thoreen said those vines are diseased, and other vines north of College Avenue have already been removed for similar reasons.

Solar panels recently have been a popular target for thieves in other parts of Napa County. The college’s array could have an alarm that would go off if any of the panels are removed from the system.

Investors are footing the bill for the array at no up-front cost to the college. Under the terms of a 25-year power purchase agreement, the college will buy the electricity produced by the array for a cheaper price than they’re paying to PG&E.

Phil Alwitt of SPG Solar, Inc. said the investors bankrolling the project are relying on tax incentives that would require the array to be built by the end of 2009. Work could start as early as September.

The 123-kilowatt array would be a fraction of the size of the 1.2-megawatt solar field installed at NVC’s Napa campus, which can power the entire campus on a sunny day.

Neighbors proposed installing the St. Helena array where it would be less visibly intrusive, perhaps on the roofs of college buildings or in the parking lot.

Dan TerAvest, director of facilities for Napa Valley College, said a rooftop solar panel array would be less energy-efficient and less cost-effective, in part because the college would have to get the project approved by the Division of State Architects, which oversees school construction projects.

He said installing the panels in the college’s parking lot would require the removal of many trees.

Neighbors also suggested using the city-owned Wappo Park adjacent to the campus. College officials said the city would have to weigh in on that option.

Under state law the college is exempt from the city’s design review process, but has voluntarily agreed to undergo design review for any changes to its structures.

Planning Director Carol Poole said the city “couldn’t outright deny a solar installation, but we could certainly ask for changes related to the design review authority that we have.”

The planning commission will discuss the project sometime in the next few months. Even though the college won’t be bound by the process, college officials said they’ll welcome comments from the city and members of the public.

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