SANDWICH - Representatives of Turning Point Energy presented plans to the Sandwich City Council recently for a solar farm and a community solar power program.

TPE is seeking City Council approval to develop the community solar farm on an approximate 25 acre parcel located along the west side of Sandy Bluff Road, just north of Route 34.

Community solar is a centralized solar project and purchasing program in which multiple customers, including residential customers and local businesses, can receive energy benefits from one off-site local solar farm.

During a Feb. 20 City Council committee of the whole meeting, Alex Mendelson, TPE development manager, said residents could subscribe to the program for a reduction of 10% to 15% on their current electric bills, without installing solar panels on their own roofs.

Through the program, subscribers would secure a fixed percentage of power generated by the solar farm and then receive a credit on their bills.

Mendelson said the program requires no upfront cost or long-term commitment from the subscriber and is financed through renewable energy credits and selling power back to the grid.

A similar proposal was made in July 2022, when Mendelson presented different plans for a 35 acre solar farm and community solar program to the council that would have been located at 15999 Pratt Road, north of the Sandwich Fair grounds.

Besides the location, the main difference from the 2022 proposal is the inclusion of sheep that would graze the Sandy Bluff Road site.

Mendelson said the Sandy Bluff Road site requires dual usage of solar and agriculture or “agrivoltaics” and they are suggesting using sheep to satisfy the agricultural requirement.

Mendelson said the sheep would graze in rotations, simultaneous with the field’s solar energy production and would maintain weeds on the property.

“The reason that you would welcome this project on that portion of the site rather than waiting for future use is because this project further energizes the electric line that runs along the railroad.”

—  Alex Mendelson, TPE development manager

The program also requires native pollinator plantings to comply with the Illinois Solar Pollinator Scorecard. Mendelson said landscaping on the site would have flowering species that would bloom in the spring, summer and fall so that they become predominant and natural weed deterrents.

He described the solar farm as a quiet neighbor and said once it was constructed the field would be silent and create no additional traffic, as it would be monitored remotely and accessed just once per month for maintenance.

Mendelson said that the array would not require water or sewer usage and there would be no emissions nor impact on adjacent property value. He added that the solar farm would last up to 40-years, and materials from the arrays would be recycled when decommissioned.

Mendelson said the proposed arrays would provide 3.5 MWac (megawatt alternating current) to the ComEd grid, interconnecting at the railroad tracks near the intersection of Sandy Bluff Road and Route 34.

The proposed solar farm site would be between 23 and 30 acres. Mendelson said TPE is working on a lease agreement with the landowner, and the rest of the 101.5 acre parcel’s usage would be up to the discretion of the landowner.

Mendelson said the array is projected to generate a total tax revenue of $24,000 in its first year, which would be split between the city and the Sandwich School District.

Mendelson said they would look to hire locally for the 50 to 75 jobs they expect to create over the 12 to 18 months of the solar farm is under development.

TPE would bring on an investor to fund the project who would then own and operate the array once construction is complete and a third company would then be brought on for marketing to get users signed up, Mendelson said.

Mayor Todd Latham asked Mendelson why the City Council should approve the solar farm instead of waiting for another proposal for the site.

Mendelson said the site is currently zoned for commercial business and any further development in that area would benefit from the additional power generated by the solar farm.

“The reason that you would welcome this project on that portion of the site rather than waiting for future use is because this project further energizes the electric line that runs along the railroad,” Mendelson said.