The Fayette County Board dealt with multiple discussions on solar projects at their monthly meeting.
The Fayette County Board did approve the Bluff Solar LLC Application. This solar farm will be located east of Bluff City—south of U.S. Route 40 and east of Illinois Route 185. It will be a 600 acre solar farm with a 90 mega watt plan. The project will result in significant application and construction fees to the county and a boost in the property taxes for the property. Project Manager Shane Shields from Burch Creek was on hand for the meeting to address any further questions by the County Board. The board approved the solar project to move forward.
There was also discussion on another solar project that was actually approved more than one year ago. Katie and Zachary Ledbetter addressed the County Board during the meeting. They said they have just built a home at 1480 N 425 Street, which is in rural Vandalia and located just south of Interstate 70. They stated they had just moved into the home about one month ago. But, they have since learned the property owners around them are planning to build a solar farm. They stated their displeasure with this possibility and stated they would not have built their home in that location if they had know of the plans for the solar project. During the meeting it was confirmed that the project around their home was approved by the County Board for a solar project in May of last year. Board Vice Chairman Merrell Collins says they do not have a lot of options on approving or not approving such projects as they are heavily regulated by the state. Collins said he also learned that adjacent property owners do not have to be informed of just a project. And, he says that may need to change.
Another issue would be the county does not have zoning, unlike a municipality, to limit such projects in specific areas. Collins says there are some limitations—solar projects must be 500 feet away from a residence, they must have a fence and they can require them to have trees or shrubs to block the solar project. The solar project has not started as of this time.
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