The public records cited in this section, in the order they appear: the minutes, packets and recordings of Andover's own meetings.
On January 11, 2023 the Board of Education voted 7-0 to accept the solar power purchase agreement for the elementary school, after reviewing the rate, the escalator, the project cost and the twenty-year savings (~30:18-58:58). The town was not a party to it, there was no town meeting, and no town signature was required. Three weeks later the superintendent reported that "Jeff Maguire did do the notarized page that has to go through from the town for us to apply for that PPA application," and that the February deadline had been met (February 2, 2023, ~9:39).
At the January 13, 2025 Board of Selectmen meeting the board split over whether the town should involve itself in the elementary school's solar project. Selectman Anne Cremé argued it was not the town's business: "the solar is the school and the school is the one who's going to be working on that... it's simply the school's Authority," and "the Board of Education has control of the school building and we should not be usurping what the Board of Education should be working on" (~57:09-59:02). First Selectman Jeff Maguire, presiding, rejected that, challenged her for having voted against the solar referral at planning and zoning, and asked "who do you work for -- you work for the town of Andover or... the faction on the board of education that does not want to work with us" (~59:02). Selectman Jeff Murray then intervened, saying he supported the solar project but was concerned that solar companies overstate the savings they promise. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoLJQi4XujI
At the February 25, 2025 Board of Selectmen special meeting, the Board of Education, through its representative, asked the selectmen to schedule a town meeting specifically for the solar project at the school, separate from the town's other items (~1:20). The selectmen discussed whether the school's power purchase agreement should go to a town vote at all. One selectman argued the town had to vote because of the potential cancellation-penalty liability, saying the town meeting is the legislative body (~8:36). The board voted 4-0 to schedule a town meeting for March 13, 2025.
At the March 10, 2025 Board of Selectmen meeting, under the item on solar at the elementary school, First Selectman Jeff Maguire, presiding, objected that the power purchase agreement "was signed by the Board of Education already, which it shouldn't have been, so there has to be some amendment to that contract," and said he would request that something be drafted with the town attorney so the town could be brought into the agreement (~1:12:40). He framed the project as carrying a liability the town must control: "there is a capital liability on this, so we need to put a dollar number on it," and noted the cancellation penalties were high (~1:14:15).
At the March 13, 2025 special town meeting the sole substantive item was the rooftop solar project at Andover Elementary. The resolution approved the project subject to a second amendment to the power purchase agreement whose terms "shall include at a minimum the addition of the town of Andover to the agreement," together with preservation of the roof warranty and a fair- market-value buyout (~51:30). It passed 53 to 24 (~1:28:15). Asked directly whether any other town is also a signer on a school's power purchase agreement, the solar company's representative said he had never seen it (~47:25).
At the June 26, 2025 Board of Selectmen special meeting the sole action item was the elementary school's solar project, and the board voted 4-0 to approve the second amendment to the solar power and services agreement. First Selectman Jeff Maguire, presiding, ran the item; the town attorney reported that he had reviewed the amendment and coordinated with the Board of Education's own solar attorney before urging approval. The amendment reduced the panel count and adjusted the lifetime rate, still described as better than the district's current rate and held for twenty years. At the July 9, 2025 Board of Education meeting a district update reported that the solar amendment had been sent bearing the signatures of the board chair and the First Selectman.