Decatur Co. solar energy project vote postponed until August

Due to a clerical error

(GREENSBURG, Ind.) – No decision was made in regard to a proposed solar energy project in Decatur County on Wednesday night. 

The Decatur County Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) meeting included an agenda item from Cobia Solar to request a “special exception” for construction of a commercial solar energy facility on 7,000 acres in the Burney area. 

The meeting began with the announcement that a vote would not be cast last night due to a clerical error in a publication. 

However, Cobia Solar allowed the meeting to continue and their representatives first offered a rebuttal to public comments from a November meeting before sharing new information to the BZA board. 

Gordon Smiley is a local landowner who has property that the proposed facility would be built on. He spoke on behalf of other landowners who are in support of the project.

He listed several reasons why some landowners are in favor of the project including family heritage, a diversification of income, improved tax streams for the county, and new agriculture systems such as new grazing opportunities.  

“Our farm is a business and these business decisions were not made quickly but methodically over time,” said Smiley. “As landowners we live directly next to the proposed project so we are not asking anyone else to do something we are not willing to do.”

The BZA board then turned it over to public comment when an attorney for those opposed walked to the podium. 

“One of my clients asked that, because we heard a lot of new information tonight beyond the rebuttal, they were wondering if it made sense to do the public comment [section] at the next meeting since we’re not voting tonight,” the attorney mentioned.

A BZA board member responded, “I think there is enough new sizable and important information that most likely our board and community needs to digest that information and I believe public input would make sense at the next meeting.”

The next Decatur County BZA meeting is scheduled to take place on August 6.