Board debates solar scenarios
By Bethany Wagoner bwagoner@prairiepress.net
Battery energy storage systems, also known as BESS, and commercial solar energy facility ordinances continue to be a hot topic for members of the Edgar County Board. At the board’s study session on Monday, April 21, a 30-minute presentation by visiting attorney Andrew Keyt of Hyle Royster turned into a two-hour discussion about the intricate details of updating the county’s solar energy facility ordinance.
According to Keyt, the ordinance currently proposed by the board already closely follows a sample he worked to create with the Illinois Association of County Board members of the Farm Bureau in 2023, when the original state statute was passed.
At the meeting, he shared details of the county’s newly proposed ordinance with the board and a small audience, taking the time to break down the 18-page document’s intricate details, including his concerns surrounding LaSalle Sinclair factors, zoning and special use permits.
“Frankly, your solar ordinance looks fairly decent, and there are really only a few suggestions I would make to get that where you want it to be,” Keyt said.
The proposed ordinance will govern the siting of commercial solar energy facilities, including substations, BESS and other supporting facilities that generate electricity to be sold to wholesale or retail markets. The ordinance does not apply to battery energy storage systems that are not used as part of a commercial solar energy facility.
“We have included restrictions for solar projects to either agricultural or industrial use land,” Keyt said. “Solar could really pop up just about anywhere. Typically, projects that are a commercial solar energy facility are not going to pop up in a residential area just because there is not enough space, but most counties restrict the utilization of their land within the county for solar projects.”
The attorney emphasized the importance of the county establishing and maintaining restrictions surrounding building permits to ease the potential frustrations and issues that may arise in the areas of zoning.
“You are not zoned, so you don’t have a zoning map. It might be a little difficult sometimes to determine if a parcel is strictly agricultural or strictly residential, or both,” Keyt said. “But, this (ordinance) also proposes to restrict that to agricultural or industrial utilized properties.”
“You guys are a little bit a little bit unique,” Keyt said. “In Illinois, there are essentially two types of counties when it comes to zoning. There are those that are formally zoned under the county’s code, but as I understand it, you guys are not zoned. You don’t have zoning, but the state gave you authority to pass ordinances regulating wind and solar projects back in 2023 when they passed their state statute regulating wind and solar projects.”
The proposed ordinance takes great care to detail prohibitions for storage and facilities, including facility structures erected and installed without building permits and special use permits. It also requires an in-person meeting to take place within the county at least 60 days prior to filing for a special use permit application.
In addition to reviewing items that he believed the county should keep in the proposed ordinance, the lawyer also highlighted additions he thought should be made.
“Right now, your ordinance does not include the application of what we call the LaSalle/Sinclair factors,” he explained.
“It is up to you whether you want to include them or not. If you don’t include them, you wouldn’t be considering those aspects in relation to an application when it’s important,” Keyt said. “We can always have that discussion. It’s not something you need to decide today.”
According to Keyt, LaSalle/Sinclair Factors are primarily used when the Illinois courts review a zoning decision by a county. The factors are used when the court contemplates a project’s impact on health, safety and welfare for a community, as well as property values.
“This is probably the biggest thing that you’ll have to make a decision on, whether you want (the factors) to be part of the application or not,” Keyt said. “If you don’t, this is really going to just be a check-the-box scenario. If an applicant comes in and they meet all of the requirements, then they have met all of the requirements and the state statute says you have to issue a special use permit. Again, this is entirely up to you.”
Several pages of the proposed ordinance cover requirements that an applicant must meet. The requirements include design and installation specifics, including but not limited to certifications, aesthetics and lighting, weed management plans, warnings, use of public roads, site assessments, agriculture impact mitigations and engineer’s certificates.
An application should also be accompanied by multiple items, including a commercial solar energy facility summary that includes its approximate overall name plate generating capacity and a lengthy list of structures, distributors and potential site plans, including project construction timelines. Two legal descriptions, detailed contact information for applicants, owners and operators, a site plan, a decommissioning plan for solar energy facilities and all components, several required studies, an Agricultural Impact Mitigation Agreement (AIMA), topographical map of the facility and surrounding areas, waivers and set back requirements, results and recommendations from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
Following the lengthy presentation, members of the county board discussed the next steps with Keyt and representatives from businesses interested in setting up solar facilities within the county. The group will reconvene to continue the discussion at 9:30 a.m. on May 12, during the board’s next study session.