From USA Today-Gore Solar panel update

Gore's solar plans thwarted by upscale neighborhood's rules - USATODAY.com

Mark Humphrey, AP
BELLE MEADE, Tenn. (AP) — Zoning rules in Al Gore's upscale neighborhood kept the former vice president and environmental activist from installing solar panels on his roof. Gore bought his multimillion dollar home in 2002 in Belle Meade, an exclusive city encircled by metropolitan Nashville, and he has been ramping up an ambitious renovation ever since. But his contractors ran into a legal barrier last summer when they sought to apply for a permit to install solar panels on the roof. Terry Franklin, Belle Meade's building officer, said the town only allows
power generating equipment to be placed on the ground level. "Solar panels are generators," Franklin said.

"We told them they couldn't do it," he said. "They wanted to try anyway, but we convinced them it was something the board wouldn't allow." Gore was criticized last month by a conservative group that claims his mansion uses too much electricity. That group disputes the findings of most scientists that global warming is a serious problem.

Belle Meade, the nation's fifth-richest town according to the 2000 Census, developed the zoning rules because many of its homes have backup electric generators. There are many tall trees in the city, and the residents have discouraged Nashville Electric Service crews from pruning trees near power lines. Power outages from falling branches led several residents to back up their power supply with personal generators. Gore's contractors had argued that silent solar panels should not be equated with noisy gas or diesel powered generators, but they ultimately agreed not to press the issue while the city considered changes to the code.

New rules going into effect on April 1 will allow homeowners to install solar panels on their roofs. But there's a caveat: "Solar panels may be installed upon the roof of a building so long as they are not visible from the street or from any adjoining property," according to the ordinance. Gore's roof does have flat areas where the panels could be placed, Franklin said.

The builders at Gore's home plan to make the application for solar panels once the new ordinance goes into effect.
"We just sort of had to wait until they caught up with things," said Steve Rick, Gore's architect. "I didn't think it was worth fighting because we knew the change was coming." Utility records show the Gore family paid an average monthly electric bill of about $1,200 last year at the 10,000-square-foot home. The Gores used about 191,000 kilowatt hours in 2006 — far more than the typical Nashville household, which uses about 15,600 kilowatt-hours per year. It was unclear how much difference solar panels would make in Gore's power bill.

Gore already purchases enough energy from renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and methane gas to balance 100% of his electricity costs. Gore, who starred in the documentary film "An Inconvenient Truth" about
global warming, has said repeatedly he has no plans to join the field of 2008 Democratic presidential aspirants.
But Gore's unwillingness to rule out a run completely has given some activists hope that he might change his mind.