Two photo voltaic farms deliberate for the McCracken County location are in varied phases of improvement.
Representatives of the McCracken County Photo voltaic mission mentioned they are going to share progress updates at a public listening to with the McCracken County Board of Adjustment in a few weeks. In the meantime, Ragland Photo voltaic mission representatives are working to include neighborhood suggestions into design plans throughout mission improvement.
McCracken County Photo voltaic
The McCracken County Board of Adjustment has scheduled a public listening to on January 18 to debate the conditional use allow issued to McCracken County Photo voltaic, LLC in November 2021, based on a public discover printed in The Paducah Solar on January 5.
McCracken County Photo voltaic is now owned by vitality company AES, which purchased out former proprietor Group Power in December 2021. McCracken County Photo voltaic plans a 60-megawatt photo voltaic farm on 616 acres of land in Kevil north of Massey Street , between Bethel Church Street and New Liberty Church Street.
Beneath McCracken County’s zoning ordinance, business photo voltaic vitality methods bigger than half an acre are allowed beneath the situation that they be used solely in agricultural zones.
Initially, the Board of Adjustment denied the photo voltaic mission’s conditional use allow in October 2021. Nevertheless, after a second public listening to in November 2021, which included testimony from neighborhood leaders in regards to the mission’s potential constructive financial influence , the board in the end voted to grant McCracken County Photo voltaic a conditional use allow.
Beneath Kentucky Revised Statutes 100.237(3), in instances the place a conditional use allow has not been used inside one yr of the date of its issuance, or such different deadlines as could also be prescribed, “such conditional use allow won’t be returned to its authentic designation. until there’s a public listening to.” Exercised, as used within the KRS statute when the development is a part of using a conditional use allow, which means that the primary constructing or renovations are nonetheless beneath development to a big extent, the binding contracts for some constructions are allowed, or needed situations involving giant quantities. funding beneath contract, in improvement, accomplished.
In a letter dated December 14, 2022 despatched from McCracken County Planning and Zoning Administrator Greg Cannon notifying McCracken County Photo voltaic proprietor AES of the January 18 public listening to, Cannon wrote, “The allow McCracken County Photo voltaic’s conditional use allow was accepted on November 17, 2021, and this workplace has not acquired a web site plan, decommissioning plan, or proof that the conditional use allow was in use by December 14, 2022.”
“On the aforementioned assembly, the Board would admire an replace on the standing of the mission and when it expects to obtain these supplies,” Cannon wrote in a Dec. 14 letter addressed to AES Allowing Venture Supervisor Jenn D Augustine.
In a press release to The Solar, AES Senior Improvement Supervisor Lauren Brunsdale mentioned the upcoming listening to is “for the renewal of the present conditional use allow issued in 2021.”
Brunsdale mentioned the beginning of development on the McCracken County Photo voltaic Initiatives has been delayed because of ongoing Midcontinent Impartial System Operator interconnection examine delays. MISO is the regional grid operator that covers a lot of the center of the nation, together with western Kentucky. Brunsdale mentioned that vitality initiatives that connect with {the electrical} grid can not start development till they obtain the interconnection examine outcomes and a closing settlement with the grid operator that enables the mission to attach.
“The MISO interconnection research for this mission have been delayed by MISO 18 instances, pushing the outcomes again two years thus far. These ongoing MISO interconnection examine delays have an effect on 600 initiatives throughout the area, together with McCracken County Photo voltaic,” Brunsdale mentioned in a written assertion to The Solar.
When the mission’s conditional use allow was first accepted in 2021, mission leaders on the time mentioned the expectation was to construct by 2022, with the purpose of getting the system operational by the top of that yr.
Regardless of the delays within the MISO examine, Brunsdale mentioned AES is constant to maneuver ahead with the mission in accordance with the conditional use allow. Brunsdale mentioned AES plans to supply an replace on its improvement efforts over the previous yr at an upcoming Board of Adjustment listening to.
“AES will personal and function the mission in McCracken County for a very long time, so we’re devoted to being accomplice and proceed to construct on the native partnerships we’ve developed to make sure the mission delivers sustainable advantages. advantages the neighborhood,” Brunsdale mentioned.
The county’s Board of Adjustment might think about whether or not to revoke the conditional use allow allowed by the KRS statute, Cannon wrote to AES.
Ragland Photo voltaic Venture
Final October, representatives of BrightNight and its Ragland Photo voltaic mission held a neighborhood assembly to ask the general public to be taught in regards to the deliberate photo voltaic farm mission and for the general public to supply suggestions on the mission. The assembly is step one BrightNight should take for its state allow course of.
BrightNight plans a photo voltaic farm mission estimated to achieve 1,000 acres in McCracken County. Louisville Fuel and Electrical Firm and Kentucky Utilities Firm have an settlement with BrightNight to buy renewable vitality credit from the vitality produced by the Ragland Photo voltaic mission.
From the October assembly, BrightNight Director of Improvement Tyler Coon mentioned the group acquired “useful” suggestions and included suggestions that Coon mentioned will result in a revised format of the photo voltaic panels, extra landscaping and up to date setbacks.
“We proceed to arrange for native and state allowing and are on observe throughout the mission’s improvement part,” Coon wrote in a press release to The Solar. “Whereas we’re excited to maneuver ahead, we really feel that permitting adequate time to assemble native suggestions and conduct technical research is a vital a part of our dedication to being a trusted native accomplice.”
Moreover, Coon mentioned BrightNight has accomplished environmental and hydrology research that may assist the corporate guarantee its design is suitable with native wildlife and neighbors close to the mission web site.
Coon mentioned BrightNight is working with KU to find out an acceptable energy supply date for the Ragland mission, which he mentioned will in the end dictate the beginning of development. He expects development to start in late 2023 or 2024.
BrightNight is within the technique of delivering two gigawatts of renewable vitality throughout Kentucky, which Coon mentioned additionally features a deliberate mission in Ballard County.
