LaSalle County Board on Aug. 14 approved special-use permits to allow two 5-megawatt commercial solar projects on a parcel at 2741 North 3850 Third Road in Mission Township, owned by Sharon Johnson and proposed by Jacob's Ladder Solar 1 LLC and Jacob's Ladder Solar 2 LLC. The two approvals were taken as separate petitions but concern, testimony and conditions overlapped.

County staff summarized that each petition would place a roughly 5-megawatt array on portions of the property; the first petition (25-15) received a unanimous recommendation from the Zoning Board of Appeals and county staff said it met the county code and LaSalle County zoning ordinance standards. The second petition (25-16) was described as the other half of the same parcel and initially received a 3-2 recommendation from the ZBA. County staff said both projects meet the standards in 55 ILCS 5/5-1202-0 and the county zoning ordinance, subject to conditions.

Conditions placed on both approvals include following Illinois Department of Natural Resources and LaSalle County Soil and Water Conservation District recommendations, providing site signage with maintenance contact numbers, vegetative maintenance and weed control during and after construction, use of cover crops if needed between harvest and construction, and installation of vegetative screening per the design plan before construction. During the hearing, a board member proposed an added condition requiring "two staggered rows of evergreens" adjacent to a specific neighboring parcel (assessor PIN 10-22-125-000); the board approved that amendment by voice and roll call.

Several board members spoke about farmland loss and county authority. One board member said he was voting yes only to avoid county liability because state law limits local denials; another noted that solar fields have a limited multi-decade life and could revert to farmland later. Neighbors requested additional screening; the board added the vegetative-screening condition to address nearby homes.

Board discussion included an estimate from staff that a 5-MW array generally takes about 40 acres, and that the combined proposal would occupy roughly 96 acres across the two arrays. The board approved the first special use (25-15) with two recorded nays and approved the second special use (25-16) after adding the screening amendment; meeting minutes record final tallies for the second vote as passing with a majority (minutes show 22 ayes with 3 nays and 3 present noted later in the roll call sequence).