Residents of Hinds County voice concerns with the Soul City Solar Project - WLBT

Residents of Hinds County voice concerns with the Soul City Solar Project

BOLTON, Miss. (WLBT) - The largest solar farm in the entire state could be heading to the Bolton and Raymond area in the coming year.

While officials expect this project to have major economic impacts for Hinds County, some residents in the area still have questions.

“Are they going to repair the land? Are they going to clean up? Is this something that’s going to last? You know, is this a reputable company?” Bolton resident David Kazery said.

Residents in the Raymond and Bolton area are speaking out after finding out about Apex Clean Energy’s economic development project, the Soul City Solar Project.

Hinds County officials say it will be a 6,500-acre solar panel farm that will generate enough energy to power over 95,000 homes throughout the county.

This shows you the approximate area where this solar farm will be located, next to John Bell Williams Airport.

One resident near the proposed solar farm has concerns for the surrounding land after finding out about the project from signs near the site.

“We were just worried about it impacting the natural landscape of Bolton because it’s beautiful out here. I mean, the wildlife is great. And, you know, we just moved out here about two years ago, and we just want to keep our property beautiful, and the surrounding area beautiful.”

The project is expected to generate up to $150 million in new, long-term tax revenue, and also employ over 400 people with construction and for the farm.

One official on the project hopes the public can see the benefits, not just near the site, but over the entire county.

“We’re using more electricity as a society, so we need to generate more of it. And solar is one of the most cost-effective means of generating new power, the cost of solar energy has dropped over 90 percent in the past decade.”

For the timeline of this project, Apex Clean Energy will go before the Hinds County Planning Commission for public feedback for them to present their application. From there, it goes to the Board of Supervisors for final approval.

If approved, Apex plans to get construction started late next year. They expect the solar farm to be complete and fully operational by the end of 2027.

You can still voice your concerns about this project on May 28 at the Hinds County Courthouse in Raymond.

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