Solar proposal goes dark with BZA

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BAINBRIDGE — The Putnam County Board of Zoning Appeals put the brakes on an energy company’s proposal to bring a 200-megawatt solar farm to Russell Township.

In a special meeting Tuesday evening at the Bainbridge Community Center, a motion to approve the special exception for Cold Spring Solar Farm was defeated 4-1.

Lora Scott, who made the motion, was the only affirmative vote. Fellow board members Randy Bee, Raymond McCloud, Kevin Scobee and Ron Sutherlin all cast negative votes.

After 14 months of meetings and negotiations between Putnam County leaders and officials from Arevon Energy and developer Tenaska, the issue is at an end ... at least for now.

Along the way, the plan received approval of a tax abatement from the Putnam County Council, as well as a $6 million economic development agreement with the Putnam County Commissioners, in addition to the framework of agreements on decommissioning and road use.

The BZA, however, proved less amenable to the idea of converting 1,400 acres of farmground into a solar field.

At the end of a three-hour special meeting in August over the same issue, the BZA had asked for more answers from developers regarding issues such as emergency response, soil testing, the safety of the materials used, the management of vegetation and property values in the area, among other issues.

Information on these subjects was presented to the BZA, with Tenaska and Arevon officials answering questions from the board.

No public comment was taken Tuesday, as that was taken care of last month.

Following a brief recess, the board reconvened to vote, with Scott noting she had asked the most questions, so she should make the motion.

“I think this board is faced with making a decision that’s really tough to make because a lot of us up here place very high value on prime ag ground, and that’s what this is,” Scott said. “So you have to weigh the value on 1,400 acres with the value that we put on having electricity at our fingertips — particularly at a time when we’re experiencing the impacts of change to our weather patterns and we’re also seeing aging power generating facilities being closed or shut down, and so we have to look at things differently.”

With that, she made a motion to approve the special exception, going on to address the findings of fact that the BZA has to meet to grant a special exception: 1) It must not be injurious to the health and safety of the public; 2) It must not affect the value of nearby properties, 3) It will be consistent with the character of the nearby area; and 4) The board may impose conditions.

Always thorough in her considerations, the veteran BZA member addressed each of these, making special note on the third matter that the proposed solar farm is adjacent to another more industrial use of agricultural land in the form of the Heritage Environmental hazardous landfill.

“Whether we like it or not, when you go across the road to the east of this, you have Heritage Environmental Services,” Scott said. “It is consistent with the character of the area.”

Scott gave lengthy consideration to the special conditions, asking for soil testing before construction and after decommissioning, evergreen screens around a nearby cemetery, access to another cemetery that would lie within the affected land, fencing of an agricultural character except where required for security or by law, meeting all drainage requirements as determined by the Putnam County Soil and Water Conservation District and drainage board, Arevon providing special equipment and gear to fire and EMS agencies most likely to respond to the site and screening for three nearby homes, should the owners choose.

McCloud seconded the motion, apparently in order to bring it to a vote. Following a round of yeas and nays, County Planner Lisa Zeiner called for a roll call vote to make each vote clear.

Of the four negative votes, only Scobee gave a brief explanation.

“It is my belief in the findings of fact that this does have an effect on the welfare of the community, on the property values and so forth and so on, therefore I vote nay,” Scobee said.

With the votes cast, McCloud brought the meeting to an end without calling for a vote on adjournment.

“It’s been denied by a majority of the board,” McCloud said. “The meeting is adjourned.”

Though the request has been denied, the issue may not be dead just yet. According to Zeiner and County Attorney Jim Ensley, Arevon still has two possible courses of action. One is to wait six months and apply again. The second is to take the matter to court.

One matter that remains unclear at this time is how, specifically, matters such as solar farms will be handled once the county adopts an updated zoning ordinance. The increasing prevalence of renewable energy generation was one of the factors that finally prompted county officials to update an ordinance that has seen little change since being adopted 30 years ago.

For now, area residents looking to preserve the rural environment of Russell Township are celebrating, while those believing this to be the next step in the land’s evolution will have to wait.