Solar zoning concerns fuel Bedford County's potential funding shift from business alliance

BEDFORD COUNTY, Va. (WSET) — The Bedford County Board of Supervisors is considering ending its funding to the Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance.

During Monday night’s work session, Supervisor John Sharp brought up the idea of pulling the county’s $100,000 funding to the Alliance, saying that it hasn’t been a good return on their investment. The supervisors came to a consensus and asked county staff not to include the $100,000 for the alliance in the fiscal year 2026 budget. Leaders have not passed that budget yet, which means this has not been passed or finalized.

ABC13’s Hayden Robertson spoke with County Administrator Robert Hiss, who said the county is ready to handle its own economic development.

“I don’t think it’s going to hurt Bedford County,” County Administrator Hiss said. “I mean we’re prepared to pivot our operations and our existing economic development office in order to assume those responsibilities and duties the LRBA has historically performed for us, but I think we’ll just have to adjust over the upcoming weeks once that partnership is no longer current.”

Supervisor Sharp also said that the money should be set aside for legal services to address the quote, “the imminent state threat” of taking zoning oversight of commercial solar farm operations away from local governments. County Administrator Hiss said Bedford County has no solar farms whatsoever.

“Bedford County does not permit utility-scale solar arrays; it’s not allowed in our zoning ordinance at all,” Hiss said.

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However, Hiss said Supervisor Sharp’s concerns are true.

“There have been bills that have been introduced in the General Assembly over the last couple of years that really erode the local government’s ability to make a land use decision in their locality regarding solar arrays,” Hiss said. “That is what the biggest concern is; it’s not that Bedford County is against solar. If you wanna have solar on your rooftop or on your business or on your own land that is for net metering, that’s okay. But the thousand-acre utility-scale solar arrays, we do have a problem with those. Most importantly, we think those decisions should be made locally by your local government and not by an arm of the state government.”

Hiss said some people have stopped by that are interested in bringing solar farms to the area; however, he said those conversations ended quickly since the county does not allow them.

Hiss added that whatever the supervisors do, the county is ready for growth and has great sites available in areas like New London that would be great for developers. He said that the goal would be to create a new marketing path by utilizing the fact that the county sits in-between both Roanoke and Lynchburg.

“Bedford County is in a unique situation, we’re in between two metro areas, Roanoke and Lynchburg,” Hiss said. “Historically, the partner with LRBA has meant that it’s always been the Lynchburg story, but we have a whole other side of our county that’s also linked to Roanoke. I think this is an opportunity for us to get the best of both worlds, where we’ll be able to tell our story from an economic development standpoint and capture the strengths of both regions: the Roanoke region and the Lynchburg region. I think that could open up some opportunities for us that maybe today don’t exist.”

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Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance CEO Megan Lucas released the following statement about the county’s possible partnership end:

The Lynchburg Regional Business Alliance is an alliance of businesses and municipalities committed to driving job creation, capital investment, and regional economic development. We have had a long, engaged, and positive relationship with Bedford County, working together on a variety of initiatives to strengthen the local economy. It is unfortunate that the significant return on their investment for Bedford County is not being recognized as a strong and valuable partnership.

While we will miss their partnership, we remain steadfast in our mission to sustain and grow industry across this wonderful region, regardless of individual financial commitments. As the regional chamber of commerce and economic development organization, our work spans the federally defined Lynchburg region—the City of Lynchburg and the four surrounding counties of Appomattox, Amherst, Bedford, and Campbell.

Bedford County has invested millions in its industrial parks, and removing them from our regional marketing and economic development efforts is a missed opportunity. However, our commitment remains unchanged—we will continue to generate awareness, attract jobs, and drive capital investment for the region. A strong, unified approach is essential in today’s competitive economic landscape, and while this decision is disappointing, we remain focused on the growth and success of the broader regional economy.

Our five-year regional economic development strategy remains on track, prioritizing talent and workforce development, growing and attracting wealth-creating jobs, ensuring a competitive supply of industrial sites and buildings, and creating a strong sense of place. These initiatives are critical to the long-term prosperity of our region, and we will continue working with our dedicated municipal partners to advance these goals.

For decades, we have enjoyed a strong and engaged partnership with Bedford County, and it has been a privilege to work alongside their leadership in advancing regional economic development. While this decision is disappointing, it does not change our mission.

We remain the regional chamber of commerce and economic development organization dedicated to driving regional growth and prosperity. With more than 73 economic development partners, we will continue working diligently to attract jobs, capital investment, and new opportunities for our entire region.

Our footprint and mission remain the same, with a strong emphasis on our committed municipal partners, including the City of Lynchburg, Amherst County, Campbell County, Town of Amherst, Town of Appomattox, and Town of Altavista. Their continued partnership ensures that we can sustain and grow industry, create jobs, and strengthen our regional economy.”

The Bedford County Board of Supervisors will vote on their budget in May, and that is when a decision will be made on whether or not their partnership with the alliance will end.