Solar panels loom, neighbors fume in Indianapolis suburb

Chris Sikich | IndyStar

Show Caption Hide Caption Carmel in 30 seconds What you need to know about Carmel, Ind. Chris Sikich/IndyStar

CARMEL, Ind. — The decision by Carmel to approve a homeowner's large solar installation has left neighbors fuming and fearing their property values will suffer.

Just after Halloween, David Luedtke began installing a roughly 5,000-square-foot, 8-foot-tall array with at least 156 solar panels at the back of his 11-acre estate on Clay Center Road. While the array is not visible from the road, it backs up to Clay Springs, a small neighborhood with homes averaging around $500,000. The solar panels appear to be screened from Luedtke's own house by a tree line.

A handful of homeowners have protested to Mayor Jim Brainard and the Carmel City Council that the solar array is the scope of an industrial, not a residential, project. They want it removed, but they realize they may have to settle for having Luedtke install landscaping to screen the solar panels from view.

"I used to look out over 100 beautiful acres," said homeowner Tom Johnson. "Now, from my living room, my kitchen, my sunroom and my master bedroom, I see solar panels."

Johnson was among several homeowners who went to the Carmel City Council meetings on Dec. 4 and again Dec. 18 to complain. They think the installation trampled on their rights and their real estate values. They also think the approval and installation was part of a rush job to beat a Jan. 1 deadline when a new state law begins phasing out the benefits of installing solar power.

"This is the largest solar installation we know of in Carmel to date," said homeowner Chet Karpinski. "This size of this installation is of commercial scope. It's really similar to what's at the airport."

Council members said at the Dec. 4 meeting that they hadn't heard about the project. Councilman Kevin Rider asked Director of Community Services Mike Hollibaugh how the project could have been approved without their knowledge.

Hollibaugh, whose department oversees zoning, told the council he approved a permit Nov. 3 for the solar array because he didn't think it needed to go before the council, a board or commission. While Carmel's ordinances don't address solar arrays directly, he said he thought it was the same as approving an accessory structure such as a garage, shed or swimming pool.

While the size — wider than the neighboring homes — would have raised flags from property owners who live in average-sized lots in neighborhoods, Hollibaugh said he didn't think it was too large when compared to the size of the estate. The installation was estimated to cost $70,000, according to the permit.

The estate is in the most exclusive area of Carmel. The area is home to properties owned by millionaire tech giant Scott Jones, oil magnate Forrest Lucas, Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri and Colts owner Jim Irsay. Luedke bought the estate this summer from disgraced financial adviser Thomas Buck, who pleaded guilty this year to swindling clients out of millions.

Luedtke, who works as a consultant in the utility business, did not return messages left on his cell phone and email for comment.

After neighbors complained to Hollibaugh, he told the council that he and his staff discussed the issue with Luedtke, who seemed willing to plant trees to screen the panels. Luedtke also has told his neighbors he would plant landscaping this spring.

Hollibaugh was not available for an interview. City spokesman Nancy Heck told IndyStar that Hollibaugh and his staff think the solar panels are appropriately sized to offset the energy consumption of the estate.

"We do not believe this was a project designed to make money or to bank energy for future use," Heck wrote in an email.

Carmel Councilman Kevin Rider told IndyStar that council members are working to find a solution for the homeowners and for future projects. He is among several council members who want to amend the city's zoning standards to include language that would regulate such projects in the future.

''It looks large," Rider said. "I wouldn't want it in my neighbor's backyard."

Real estate agents Dean Glascock of F.C. Tucker and Jimmy Dulin of RE/MAX looked at photos provided by IndyStar and said they think the solar project will hurt the property values of the homes from which it's in view.

They said homes adjacent to infrastructures such as lift stations, major roads or transformer boxes often are devalued and more difficult to sell.

"If you decorate a home correctly, if you stage a home correctly, if you just use current colors, it's worth money to a seller," Dulin said. "So if you put something back there like these solar panels, to think it doesn't affect them, that's crazy."

The process has left homeowners frustrated. While Hollibaugh approved the permit for the solar installation, he told homeowners they could appeal the decision to the Board of Zoning Appeals.

But that leaves the onus on them. While a hearing has been scheduled for Jan. 22, it appears likely to be cancelled. In order to appear on the agenda, Johnson said neighbors were told they have to pay a $167 fee, mail certified letters to anyone affected by a ruling, advertise the meeting in local newspapers and put a notification on the property that there will be a hearing. He asked that those rules be waived, but said he hasn't received a response.

Heck told IndyStar Carmel cannot waive those rules.

"The appeals process is designed for someone to try to do something that's not permitted,"' Johnson said, "as opposed to this. The process is incredibly frustrating, to have the largest solar installation ever built in the city of Carmel next to my house."

Neighbor Angie Smith said the solar panels shouldn't have been approved like they were a shed or a barn. Those, she said, would have fit the landscape.

"The city of Carmel was not prepared for this," she said. "I place the blame on them."

Mayor Jim Brainard told IndyStar there's a balance between the property rights of Luedtke and of his neighbors. He thinks, over time, the industry will make solar panels that look less intrusive. But in the meantime, he said his staff would study the issue and try to come up with some rules that work.

"We certainly want to encourage people to use solar power if they choose to," he said. "We have to do it in such a way that it’s aesthetically pleasing technology."

Follow IndyStar reporter Chris Sikich on Twitter: @ChrisSikich