Commissioners hold off solar park moratorium, plan special meeting

Mar. 22—Landowners who want to lease acres to solar energy companies, and those who oppose solar parks, gave Boone County Commissioners an earful on Monday.

They brought attorneys and a solar company representative.

Boone County Area Plan Commission President John Merson presented commissioners with a letter from the commission earlier this month, asking them to approve a two-year moratorium on large-scale solar parks and windfarms while the county's 20-year-old master plan is revamped. That process has not yet begun.

Commissioners took the request under advisement March 4, and some expected them to vote Monday. But after hearing vigorous support and objections, they agreed to schedule a public meeting in a larger space to give landowners and other stakeholders ample time to voice concerns.

Two energy companies have recently discussed solar parks with Boone County Planning Director Stephen Elkins, but neither has filed an application in his office, Elkins confirmed. None have inquired about a wind farm in recent months, he said.

Hexagon Energy, headquartered in Charlottesville, Va., is considering a solar park in western Boone County. The park would be near Granville Wells Elementary School, which is situated at Ind. 75 at County Road 500 South, north of Jamestown. The Town of Advance lies to the school's north.

And NextEra Energy has renewed interest in building a solar park in the Zionsville area after the plan commission in 2021 rejected its application for a 1,200-acre solar park spread over parts of Marion and Union townships.

Jeff Jacob, attorney for Hexagon, told commissioners that a moratorium is an extreme measure and "fundamentally unfair" after his client has already been working for months in the area and has 3,000 acres of land under contract.

He said landowners would lease their property to Hexagon for 40 years, Hexagon promises to remove the solar installation at the end of the contract, and the land will be tillable at that time.

Hexagon Project Developer Jordan Burke said his company wants to have collaborative discussions with county leaders to reach an agreement that is acceptable to all. Hexagon can design the installation with community values, such as large setbacks and landscaping, in mind.

The farmers who have offered their land for use in the Advance area don't believe a solar park will permanently erase farmland, Burke said.

Attorney Michael Andreoli represents Union and Marion township residents who favor a moratorium. Andreoli said more should be known about the cost-to-benefit ration of the solar parks. And said he doubts the benefit in tax dollars is worth the county allowing them.

Andreoli objects to fertile farmland being unproductive for 40 to 50 years and said solar energy is a federal government program pushing fiction about solar farms' ability to generate loads of energy. Plus, he said, the Union and Marion township objectors have a multitude of environmental concerns related to solar energy.

Victoria Wessler of rural Lebanon leads a grassroots Facebook group called Boone County Union — Marion Citizens for Responsible Development with more than 300 members.

She said it's critical for county leadership to pause and give careful thought to solar parks that could have a "tremendous, permanent impact," and result in the loss of prime farmland and damage to the local economy.

Stacey Sutphin operates a Facebook Group called Boone County — Jackson Jefferson Citizens Opposed to Solar Development, which has more than 850 members.

She asked commissioners to relieve the neighboring landowners' anxiety about the threat solar parks pose to their way of life. She called Hexagon secretive and aggressive, and said her group fears what they may do.

Sutphin asked commissioners to impose a moratorium so the community can discuss and learn about the alternative energy before approving a solar park.

Farmers Kim Demaree and Jack Bowen, who both said they have land under contract with Hexagon, attended Monday's meeting.

Bowen urged commissioners to skip the moratorium. He said Facebook groups have whipped up unwarranted fear and worry among the opposition. Bowen said he doesn't want more concrete warehouses or subdivisions encroaching on the 100-acre farm that has been in his family since 1902. He wants to continue to live in the country and have the view from his windows match that.

Bowen said he had other offers but chose Hexagon because they will put a 200- to 300-foot buffer of alfalfa or fescue between his living space and their fence. He feels that earning money in a way that won't damage his land is good stewardship for his granddaughter.

Bowen urged commissioners to talk with Hexagon and "come up with a plan that will work for all parties."

Farmer and agricultural businessman Jim Love recently returned from Western Kansas, where farmers must irrigate to get 100 bushels of corn per acre.

"They count on places like us that have very fertile soil that doesn't require irrigation to ship corn their way," Love said.

Indiana's average yield in 2023 was 203 bushels per acre.

"Solar is an alternative energy source," Love said. "I don't know what an alternative food source is. If we take farmland out of production, we have to synthetically create it ... I don't want to feed my kids any of that garbage.

"We've been blessed to be stewards of some pretty doggone good land that does a good job of growing corn without any additional water," Love said. "Turning Boone County into a corn-deficit area is a fool's folly and we're doing our grandchildren and great-grandchildren a disservice."

Commissioner Jeff Wolfe said he doesn't believe the ground used for a solar park would return to productivity immediately. He also said there is a lack of credible studies conducted by universities, such as Purdue, about the long-term effects of solar parks on land.

But a moratorium, he said, may result in the state stepping in and taking the decision out of local hands.

Robert Clutter, the commissioners' attorney, said moratoriums come with legal consequences that should be explored before one is imposed.

Commissioners President Don Lawson said he wants to respect owners' rights but also consider how the land use will affect neighbors.

"There's a lot more data that needs to be given to us before we decide," Lawson said, advocating for a special public meeting in the next few weeks to decide what's best for landowners and neighbors.

A meeting time had not been scheduled as of press time Wednesday.