Grundy County approves two solar farms and denies two others

The Grundy County Board approved two solar farms, north of the Grundy County Animal Control building and another on DuPont Road, and denied the petition requests of two solar farms north of Morris near Route 47 during its meeting Tuesday night.

As with many solar farm projects crossing the desk of the Grundy County Board, there’s a lot of concern from both residents and County Board members alike with the farms taking up prime farmland. There’s also the concern from the county that it’s not at liberty to reject solar farms that meet the state requirements.

Ryan Magnoni, representing applicant US Solar, said all four applications meet and exceed the requirements described in the current Grundy County ordinance. If they didn’t meet or exceed those requirements, Magnoni said, they would not be in front of the Grundy County Board.

“In the near future, we have the opportunity to upgrade the local infrastructure, increase landowners’ future financial security, increase the local tax base, enhance the air, water and soil quality, support local wildlife, and improve nearby agriculture all without harming or causing injury to anyone,” Mangoni said. “All four applications in front of you are effectively the same project located in unincorporated Grundy County and permitted under the Grundy County ordinance.”

The two denied solar farms, according to Magnoni, were recommended for denial by the Zoning Board of Appeals and Land Use Commission because the initial designs contained plans for a battery storage system in those facilities. Those have since been removed, although that did not sway the County Board in rejecting the projects.

Mark Hansen, one of the landowners, said he understands the agricultural concerns of residents and the board because he grew up on a farm north of Morris.

“I’m also a firm believer in clean energy,” Hansen said. “And I know there’s been some concerns about taking prime farmland out of production. This piece that I own is not prime farmland. It’s a class-B farm on a small road off the beaten path. I think it’d be a great spot for a solar farm.”

The solar farms south of Morris were approved, but the ones north of Morris were rejected. This falls in line with a request from the Morris City Council, which filed an objection to the solar farms north of town because these solar farms fall within land the city intends to annex as part of its comprehensive plan.

City Attorney Chris Dearth addressed the Grundy County Board, telling them the city has plans to annex this property and have it zoned as industrial. The city is at liberty to file an objection because both of these solar farms are within 1.5 miles of city limits.

“Right now, the city has planned, at least from a zoning perspective, for the US Solar Middle to be industrial and the US Solar Saratoga to be low-density residential,” Dearth said. “However, driving north on Route 47, you can see there’s a large amount of warehouses that view that as prime buildable land.”

Both parcels of land are currently zoned for agriculture.

State’s Attorney Russ Baker said the US Solar Middle project was recommended for denial on its first attempt in Sept. 2022, and nothing has changed this time.