Solar farm proposed near nature preserve in Richmond Township

A commercial use permit to install a solar farm on a 20-acre site at the intersection of Route 31 and West Solon Road in Richmond Township will be considered by the McHenry County Zoning Board of Appeals in November.

If approved, the solar farm would be next to Glacial Park in Ringwood.

Like most of the projects that have come before the zoning board in recent months, the petition does not seek to rezone the property from its agricultural use.

If approved, the project would be in close proximity to a solar proposal that has raised contention among residents.

California-based Shabadoo Solar and Cypress Creek Renewables are trying to install solar panels on a 90-acre property on the northeast corner of South Solon and West Ringwood roads belonging to West Grant Development in McHenry Township.

Critics have questioned the site’s proximity to the Windy Prairie Acres subdivision and the potential effects on the environment as well as the risk of taking prime farmland out of production long term.

The surge in solar farm proposals has been in part because of the passage of the Illinois Future Energy Jobs Act, which calls for utility companies such as ComEd to sell at least 25 percent of their energy from renewable sources.

The zoning board will meet at
1:30 p.m. Nov. 1 in Conference Room C of the McHenry County Administration Building, 667 Ware Road.

For dates and times of solar farm hearings scheduled this month, visit McHenry County's website.