[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6039462,"mediaKeyId","3784576-5d9c71e89f72d8b52383f87c910b6404","parentId",3784576,"title","Planning commission approves ATV repair shop, tiny home and 250-foot communications tower with conditions","audioSeconds",549,"startMs",151000,"endMs",700000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3784576-5d9c71e89f72d8b52383f87c910b6404&start=151&end=700","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3784576-5d9c71e89f72d8b52383f87c910b6404/thumbnail_151000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6039462/Virginia/Planning-commission-approves-ATV-repair-shop-tiny-home-and-250-foot-communications-tower-with-conditions","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6039462-e02b6a30a3706e66aebe584ac1a0bad9/orig.mp4?Expires=1770907424&Signature=SyxOKr5mHRG8X5XCuvsZoqdjjFCtsSVnn~RBXsf4We4N-gENwG4w18tCGfJz1Rv8M98O5qgztvaTijneO5kwzaL0dPDCRFzqRsOrXEbph1zX7I-mX5B51jQimjmpfKNlPLPmKHWhOMtzM-hNrNeAFfzCOKwwIkLk9gjZ7Wf-DpW4MFXcpyeAEeMRUHIGNX51Z0ScDWBkskL5FASDhN80ogzQpoFTYDiV7d4deWkSzdjjC6wL-WprDeQclG1Lv5uW9-uQzbn1x8Sww1E6zliBJyEQwsiHueCvdkpqxC8YpQ5T90xxMPqB46unMljSnrQbA9aMy-AqvCxkHbWtv~wHYA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Mecklenburg County Public Schools","date","2025-04-25T00:00:00Z","article","The Mecklenburg County Planning Commission approved three separate land-use applications during its meeting: a special-exception to operate an ATV repair shop, a special exception for a tiny home residence on an individual parcel, and a 250-foot self-supporting communications tower proposed by Towercom VB LLC.

For the ATV repair shop, a representative of the applicant described the business as a small operation with limited hours and traffic. Planning staff read recommended conditions into the record requiring compliance with VDOT commercial entrance requirements, proper drainage (stone entrance), screening of repairable vehicles behind a privacy fence, and disposal of fluids in accordance with Environmental Protection Agency standards. A commissioner moved to approve the application; the motion carried on a voice vote.

A subsequent special-exception request for a tiny home on a parcel on Sandy Fork Road had no public speakers; the commission moved and approved that application on the finding it would not be detrimental to public welfare, health or safety. The applicant was not present to speak.

The commission then considered a request by Towercom VB LLC (project representative identified as Mike Heisinga, GSS project manager, speaking on behalf of Powercom) for a 250-foot communication tower on land zoned agriculture near Old Cox Road. Heisinga said the tower would be a self-supporting lattice structure, is being planned initially for T-Mobile and is structurally capable of accommodating up to four carriers. He said the nearest existing tower is about 1.2 miles away and that the tower would require FAA lighting.

A commissioner moved to approve the tower application with multiple preconditions: submission of satisfactory SHPO documentation; final construction drawings certified by a Virginia professional engineer; provision of an FAA aeronautical study official determination of no hazard (aeronautical study number 2024-AEA-7776-OE); and installation of a dual lighting system (medium-intensity white flashing lights for daytime/twilight and flashing red lights for nighttime). The motion also required measures to minimize wildlife intrusion and to meet other county and VDOT requirements prior to issuance of building permits. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Raymond and carried on a voice vote.

The commission’s staff report and the motions for the small-business and tiny-home applications included typical conditions on site drainage, VDOT access, and screening; those conditions were read into the record at the meeting. The commission did not record detailed member-by-member tallies for the ATV, tiny-home or tower approvals; each motion was carried by voice vote as recorded in the meeting minutes.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Mecklenburg County Public Schools Meeting 2025-04-24","oneSentenceSummary","The Mecklenburg County Planning Commission approved three separate land-use applications at its meeting: an ATV repair shop special exception, a tiny-home residence special exception and a 250-foot communications tower, the latter with conditions including FAA and SHPO clearances and specified lighting.","taxTitle","MECKLENBURG CO PBLC SCHS, School Districts, Virginia","taxId",55384,"location","Virginia","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6039466,"Mecklenburg planning commission denies Antlers Road 90-MW solar project after lengthy public hearing",3527,844000,4371000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3784576-5d9c71e89f72d8b52383f87c910b6404&start=844&end=4371","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3784576-5d9c71e89f72d8b52383f87c910b6404/thumbnail_844000.jpg","/articles/6039466/Virginia/Mecklenburg-planning-commission-denies-Antlers-Road-90-MW-solar-project-after-lengthy-public-hearing","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6039466-d69ec0650e602e664eba1fc88bdbf1ae/orig.mp4?Expires=1770907424&Signature=VdqGTILZOHsb3xOexIB4Zw2KTCs~sKAYaw4IcQcWjbBAGvDmiyoPaso4GQYeA5XWbOXlAK1WJUzrk7iyU~U3ybHinkvZg~EpBiKElDjLXN62CqUQWMYaw~O5JhaHcsIjE39tc2TngunGWMs7qvcRo1taqJ~iAJN8BXU42DRhwnIPcVfQ5tmpB7t97VkhCcdryvx~ONkmOvPoxWSc-ocafWLF~8o92Y84CLTFYvSAx~U5jvUAvm5u6lzAbfvj5J6jkxfvRYw1rfah9k35IV08j5d5MzhN6w~7DGWkmPEw81HSAJUH0MbUAb~EZhWAjHrLLjCkUegbuPzl77W3wloJ2w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Mecklenburg County Planning Commission on a recorded vote denied a comprehensive-plan review for the proposed Antlers Road solar project, a 90-megawatt facility and associated substation and switchyard that would use about 490 acres of disturbance on roughly 1,009 leased acres.

The project proponent, Natalie Gerber, senior manager of development at RWE Clean Energy, told the commission the company reconfigured its proposal after a 2022 denial to reduce prime farmland impact to about 220 acres, enlarge setbacks from Mines Creek to 300 feet and increase the setback from Antlers Road to 200 feet. Gerber said the application would include a decommissioning bond, on-site sheep grazing for vegetation management, pollinator plantings, and a proposed energy credit program that would pay about $50 per month for five years to 50–60 neighboring households.

Commissioners denied the application on the grounds it was not in substantial compliance with the county’s comprehensive plan. The motion cited the site’s inclusion in mapped high-priority forest and ecological core areas, high watershed-impact model scores, proximity to Mines, Allens and Coleman creeks (which drain to the Roanoke River), and the comprehensive plan’s preference for small- or community-scale rather than utility-scale solar in rural conservation areas.

Gerber said the project would be built on leased land rather than purchased acreage, would limit panels to roughly 330 acres under array, keep about 520 leased acres in conservation for the life of the project and provide a draft siting agreement to the county. She described a timeline that anticipates state and federal permitting (including permit-by-rule and DEQ stormwater permits), construction starting in late 2027 or early 2028 and operations by 2029 if the county and board approvals proceed.

Members of the public addressed the commission for and against the project during the public hearing. Laurie Huber, a resident near Highway 58, said, “I am a unapologetically pro-solar member of the community,” and urged the commission not to “close the door” on solar development. Farming resident Ryan Romack said solar leases provide stable long-term income for landowners and called the project “an enormous opportunity for the landowner and our farming community.”

Opponents raised water-quality, wildlife, visual-impact and decommissioning concerns. Betty Upton, who said she owns property adjacent to the proposed site, said she feared “toxins in these panels” running into streams used by cattle and described potential effects on land values and rural quality of life. Gwen Wilden cited a so-called “good neighbor agreement” circulated around another project and alleged developers were using payments to silence critics; she also cited reported erosion and stormwater failures on other regional projects.

After public comment, a commissioner moved to deny the application, saying the project did not align with the comprehensive plan’s rural conservation objectives and posed the greatest potential impact to aquatic and ecological resources. The motion was seconded; commissioners then conducted a roll-call vote. The roll call as recorded in the hearing transcript shows the following votes in favor of denial: Miss Prado, Miss Samantha, Mr. Watson, Mr. Clark, Mr. Rankin, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Aaron, Mr. Hayes, Mr. Simmons, Mr. Raymond, Mr. Warren, Mr. Trump and Mr. Perez. The motion carried; the application was denied.

Planning staff noted the application had been revised from a 2022 submission and that the applicant had requested a 2,232 statutory review under the Virginia Code; the commission’s denial means the project will not advance to the board under the current application.

The commission also heard requests for further county-level regulatory safeguards voiced by residents, including annual or five-year soil and water testing, bonding or penalties for failed environmental performance, and stronger decommissioning guarantees. Several speakers urged the county to require more specific monitoring and enforcement measures before granting approvals for future utility-scale solar projects.

The commission’s denial applies to the current comprehensive-plan review and does not, by itself, prohibit the developer from submitting a revised application or pursuing appeals available under state or local law.

","The Mecklenburg County Planning Commission on a recorded vote denied a comprehensive-plan review for the proposed Antlers Road solar project, a 90-megawatt facility that would have used roughly 490 acres of disturbance on leased land.","actionData","errors"]

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Planning commission approves ATV repair shop, tiny home and 250-foot communications tower with conditions

Mecklenburg planning commission denies Antlers Road 90-MW solar project after lengthy public hearing