One person's sustainable is another person's tacky

Minnesota homeowners who want to install solar panels on their roofs describe the panels as "cool," "forward," "space-age." But "unsightly" is another word that crops up often when they go before neighborhood association boards, some of which ban solar panels in their covenants.

It's a conflict that can put friendly neighbors in an awkward position of public disagreement, but one that is becoming more common as high energy prices and concern about global warming prompt more residents to pursue generating heat and electricity from the sun.

In Eagan, homeowner Bruce Goff lobbied state legislators to introduce a measure that would prevent community associations from banning solar panels. The proposed law, which is unlikely to pass this session, follows the example of half a dozen similar measures enacted in states such as Arizona, New Jersey and Florida.

Goff, who ran into complications with neighbors over a new set of solar panels on his roof, isn't alone. Woodbury resident Chuck Eckberg looked into a $12,000 solar-powered system last summer to heat water in his house in Eagle Valley, a neighborhood of 500 homes, but was chagrined to discover that his community association banned solar panels.

"It was all amiable, but somewhat ironic, since I sit on the board myself, and I had no idea we had a rule against them," Eckberg said.

"I'm kind of sheepish about it."

Innovative Power Systems, a Minneapolis company that sells about 50 solar systems a year, has worked with a dozen prospective customers since 2000 who live in neighborhoods with rules against the panels, and that figure is likely to grow as the popularity of solar panels soars, said owner Ralph Jacobson.

"We're going to go from 0 to 60, because public perception drives the market," he said.

Between 200,000 and 250,000 U.S. homes and businesses have solar panels today, a number that has increased by more than 40 percent a year since Congress passed a federal tax credit for solar energy in 2005, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association.

Neighborhood covenants banning solar panels are "a growing concern and trend," said trade group spokeswoman Monique Hanis, who added that the group has pushed unsuccessfully for a federal law assuring a homeowner's right to install solar panels, similar to an existing law on satellite dishes.

"Solar access" laws have met with opposition from community associations, which set out rules to protect neighborhood peace and property values that can address issues ranging from the color of a family's garage to the number of pets allowed per household.

"We, as a policy, want to make sure that associations are able to dictate how they are running their communities, which is why people join associations -- so they have that kind of insurance of how things are going to be operating," said Paul Hanscom, executive director of the Community Associations Institute of Minnesota, which opposed the bill proposed in the Legislature.

"I think it'll be reintroduced in a different form, but I'm planning on spending some time with these groups to make sure we address their concerns," said Rep. Kate Knuth, DFL-New Brighton, who introduced the House measure.

But some residents are watching for legislative action as a positive step that would put neighborhood associations on an equal footing.

"It's a big risk for any association to take collectively," said Eckberg, who said some residents worry that allowing solar panels could lower property values by driving prospective home buyers to neighborhoods with more restrictive covenants.

As for his solar panels, the three-member association board on which Eckberg serves could have decided whether to allow them, but the board brought it to the annual membership meeting to avoid a conflict of interest, and a vocal minority of opponents was enough to kill the plan, he said.

Goff's neighborhood, Eagan Hills Farms, doesn't have a policy either allowing or banning solar panels, but the community association got involved last spring after a neighbor complained that the panels could reflect glaring sunlight, said association president Steve Beseke.

"We looked into it and resolved that that wasn't going to be an issue," Beseke said. "We are definitely in favor of sustainability efforts in our neighborhood."

Since his set of 10 solar panels went up last spring, Goff said, "If anyone's said anything, it's 'Gee, that's neat. How much did it cost?'"

Goff's association board has talked about writing new guidelines to address solar panels, and it circulated a rough draft last year with conditions such as requiring panels to be mounted out of sight of the street, as close to the roof as possible. But the board didn't get much feedback from residents, and it hasn't adopted new rules, Beseke said.

Some solar advocates encourage associations to talk about guidelines, including Jacobson, who also serves on the board of the Minnesota Renewable Energy Society. "The idea is that we want them to raise the issue, because then it gets on everybody's radar," he said.

Sarah Lemagie • 952-882-9016