Ultimate green home draws protests in Newport Beach over solar panel glare

Some Newport Beach residents are rising up in protest after a neighbor installed large solar panels on his home overlooking the bay.

The 3,000-square-foot solar project is part of Stephen and Mashid Rizzone's longstanding plan to create a fully "green" dream home and impart to their children a legacy of environmental responsibility, Stephen Rizzone said.

But resident Bob Olson said the panels have caused a blinding glare on his home.

The May appearance of 168 solar panels, which face the northeast side of Balboa Island from a hill, has left Olson with a two-and-a-half hour window daily in which the reflecting sunlight creates an intense glare, he said.

Olson is organizing a coalition of homeowners to take action against the project, starting with a petition to the city to have the panels moved to the Rizzones' rooftop near their home on the hillside above Bayside Drive.

"I'm all for going green, and I'm not trying to stop anyone from having solar panels," Olson told the Daily Pilot. "What I don't understand is why in the world they didn't put the panels on the roof, where it would be more fitting with the look of the community."

And the Rizzone family?

"We are certainly concerned about our neighbors, and we have tried to respond to all concerns as best we can," Rizzone said. "We have made every effort to comply with all laws and regulations. The project is fully permitted and approved by the city."

Read the full story here.

-- Sarah Peters

Photo: Some residents on Balboa Island and Bayside Drive are complaining about the glare coming off the solar panels. Credit: Kent Treptow / Daily Pilot

Comments

[PDQ]

Olson needs to get a nice big mirror and set it up to it will reflect that glare back at Rizzone's house. If Olson aims it right, Rizzone's house will be sizzling in the blinding glare from his own solar panels.

[jt]

Don't you just love it when rich people bitch at each other?

[dfb]

The word is nuisance. Nobody has the right to be a nuisance (btw: keep that in mind smokers). I completely agree with the neighbors. Solar panels are highly reflective and the homeowner and their contractor should have realized that angle would make life hell for anyone on the other side of the reflection. More and more cities are putting in regulations that specify the max angle panels can have specifically to address and avoid such complaints.

[John]

The sun moves up and down throughout the year, so it should only be a problem for a few weeks a year as the summer solstice approaches and departs.

Get some shades, and plant some nice plants on the no longer shady side of your home.

[Joe Mama Bush]

hey where is my post? Ok buy some sun glasses. Water reflects the sun light. So get over it.

[jojo]

Why didn't they install these on the roof of their house, also I wonder if they can put a wrap on these solar panels, like they do on cars and busses?

[Terry]

Before voting to move the panels, I suggest that the manufacturer of the panels be consulted regarding anti-glare coatings for the panels. It seems to me that the panels could be coated in a manner similar to non-glare eye glasses, which permit light waves to enter but eliminate the glare from glass reflection.

[Randy Paul]

This just proves that people really aren't interested in saving our earth. It could be worse they could be living on the bay in the Gulf looking at the beautiful black oil that needs pumped out to make their 8 miles to the gallon cars move.

[R Mann]

Olson should set up his own solar panels and take advantage of Rizzone's reflection, also creating shade from this invasion. Absorb the energy and redirect it. Rizzone might even create a new friendship.

Ying-yang 101.

[sethook]

Poor me! I'm facing the same problem in my hood and need some help. My neighbor has tinted windows on his Excursion and when he parks it in his driveway the reflection hits my home office window for a couple hours. I have asked him to not park in his driveway but he has been resistant to parking in the street. What can I do?