Delayed Muskegon County solar project still faces pushback 5 years later

MUSKEGON COUNTY, MI — A large solar developer is once again eyeing 1,500 acres in rural Muskegon County, but residents are not backing down.

The White River Township Planning Commission on Tuesday, Oct. 21, hosted a public hearing for another special land use request from Geronimo Power for its long-stalled solar project planned for the township.

The planning commission will discuss the application in detail in future meetings. There was no motion to approve or deny the request at Tuesday’s meeting.

Minnesota-based Geronimo Power was previously known as National Grid Renewables before it was acquired by Brookfield Asset Management and rebranded in summer 2025.

Amber Miller, director of permitting for Geronimo Power, gave an overview of the project to a crowded room of scrutinizing residents at MBD Middle School in Montague.

Geronimo Power, doing business in the township as Lakeside Solar, is proposing a 150-megawatt solar development spanning approximately 1,500 acres of farmland. It will be connected to the electric grid via the local substation.

While those 1,500 acres encompass the parcels for which Geronimo Power has lease agreements, the actual solar array will encompass 982 acres, Miller said.

The project is expected to generate around $40 million in economic impact for the township over 20 years, create 200 construction and related service jobs, and employ three people full time once it’s complete, Miller said.

“Adjacent landowner conversations are currently being conducted with those who wish to have those conversations,” she said. “We’re trying to wrap up those meetings by the end of November.”

The proposed array is estimated to avoid approximately 190,200 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually during operation, the equivalent of taking an estimated 44,300 cars off the road for a year, according to Geronimo Power’s website.

Miller also noted Public Act 233, which Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed into law in November 2023. The act, which took effect the following year, allows developers like Geronimo Power to apply directly to the Michigan Public Service Commission if the local unit of government does not have a Compatible Renewable Energy Ordinance.

White River Township does have its own CREO, but if the township denies Geronimo Power’s request, the company can still apply with the MPSC if the project meets the commission’s standards, including minimum height and setbacks.

Miller’s presentation was followed by a lengthy public comment period where dozens of residents spoke out against the project.

Tyrone Kline, who said he moved to the township from North Carolina and bought a home at 9287 Chase Road in White River Township in 2021, said his home would be surrounded by solar panels if the project is approved.

“Now, I have a choice to make, and maybe some of the other people here have that choice to make,” he said. “Do you want to stay where you’re at right now? You’ve been there for 70-something years, you want to stay there, or maybe you just need to get out, because it’s not where you want to be?”

Matt Hedges of White River Township said he’s not opposed to solar, but the array is too large and encroaches on the township’s already scarce farmland and natural resources.

“The proposed facility is described as spanning approximately 1,500 acres in White River Township. For context, the township is only about 10,000 acres in size, less than half the size of a typical township,” he said. “This means that the project would cover roughly 15% or more of the entire township area.”

A handful of residents, including Paul Schroeder, a farmer in Montague, spoke in favor of the project.

“You must be at home, watching TV or something, but this thing is going to be good for the community,” he told the crowd. “I know that the state of Michigan has lost something like 5,000 megawatts of power, and that’s got to be replaced. If you just keep having these kinds of discussions and don’t do anything, you might walk in your house and not turn any power on.”

Lakeside Solar had been working on the project for over five years, but the process has stalled due to pushback from residents. The company in February 2023 filed a lawsuit against township officials accusing them of illegally dragging their feet in considering the project.

The lawsuit stems from a six-month moratorium on new solar energy projects that the township board approved in January 2023.

White River Township in 2019 enacted a zoning ordinance governing solar energy systems that it developed in collaboration with Lakeside Solar. That collaboration, however, fell apart after some township officials who were against the project sent out a public opinion survey that prompted organized opposition, the lawsuit stated.

Lakeside Solar submitted a special land use request in November 2022, and the township at first indicated a public hearing on the request would be held the following January. That hearing, however, was canceled under the influence of “anti-solar citizen-opposition groups” and never rescheduled, the lawsuit states.

At the township board’s December 2022 meeting, White River Township Attorney Clifford Bloom told board members they could enact a six-month moratorium on solar projects in order to work on amendments to the township’s solar ordinance. The moratorium was adopted in January.

Lakeside Solar initially hoped to have a solar project operating by 2025.

The developer in the meantime had been acquiring land agreements from multiple local property owners allowing for placement of solar panels.

The controversy surrounding the project enveloped former White River Township Supervisor Michael Cockerill, who had agreed to lease some of this farm property to Lakeside Solar.

Recall language filed in April 2023 accused Cockerill of conspiring to bring the “massive solar project” to the township while failing to disclose his financial interest in the project.

Cockerill lost his position as supervisor to Ron Bailey in the subsequent November recall election.