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Commissioners direct APC to hold public hearing on solar ordinance changes including 2,500‑foot setback, screening and decommissioning
Summary
Daviess County commissioners asked the Area Plan Commission to hold a public hearing on proposed solar ordinance changes — including a 2,500‑foot setback, vegetation screening with minimum heights and a decommissioning financial assurance plan — and requested APC return a certified recommendation for final action.
The Daviess County Board of Commissioners discussed proposed changes to the county’s solar ordinance May 13 and directed the Area Plan Commission (APC) to hold a public hearing and return recommendations to the board for final action.
The topic matters because changes to setbacks, screening standards and decommissioning requirements can affect where utility‑scale solar arrays can be sited and how adjacent residents are protected from visual impacts and future site abandonment.
County staff summarized an APC discussion in which board members signaled majority support for several changes but did not take a formal APC vote. The county presentation identified three key elements for commissioner consideration: a 2,500‑foot setback from nonparticipating properties, screening by vegetation (with minimum planting heights so plantings are effective), and a required decommissioning plan with financial assurance or funds set aside to guarantee cleanup if a project ceases operations. A county staff member noted the statutory requirement that APC hold a formal public hearing before the commissioners may act.
Commissioners generally indicated they were comfortable directing APC to proceed with a public hearing and asked staff to forward the APC’s certified recommendation back to the commission for final action at the May 27 meeting if the APC can meet the advertising and public‑notice timeline. No final county ordinance change was adopted at the May 13 meeting; the item is proceeding through the APC public‑hearing and certification process.
