Delaware Muncie MPC backs revised solar ordinance, sends recommendation to county commissioners 8-1

The Delaware Muncie Metropolitan Plan Commission voted 8–1 on a recommendation to send a rewritten solar ordinance and a new battery energy storage section to the Delaware County commissioners, the commission president announced after a roll call vote on the evening's final motion.

The recommendation asks commissioners to replace Article 31, Section 13 of the county Unified Development Ordinance with a new commercial-scale solar ordinance and to add Article 31, Section 14 to cover commercial battery energy storage systems. The commission also approved a package of edits and clarifications prepared by staff before forwarding the document.

Why it matters: The plan commission's vote is advisory; the county commissioners make the final decision. The ordinance rewrite and the added battery-storage rules would set local standards on setbacks, buffers, decommissioning, surety bonds, notice and special‑use procedures, and operational requirements that developers and landowners say will determine whether several proposed projects — some already under contract with local farmers — can proceed in Delaware County.

The commission hearing drew several hours of public comment from developers, farmers, residents, union representatives and two attorneys who spoke for competing sides.

Developer and industry supporters said the county should adopt a workable ordinance to keep projects viable and preserve farmland ownership, and they urged changes that reduce what they called unnecessary cost drivers. "The ordinance places unreasonable restrictions on…