Decatur County BZA pauses decision on 7,000‑acre Cobia/GNEX solar project after new agreements and studies presented

The Decatur County Board of Zoning Appeals on June 4 agreed to continue consideration of the Cobia (GNX) commercial solar special-exception request until Aug. 6 after the developer presented new agreements and technical studies and answered questions from board members and residents.

The continuation gives the county, the board, and nearby landowners time to review an economic development terms sheet, decommissioning and road-use plans, a fire‑safety and emergency‑response agreement, and an expanded “master agricultural preservation” package the petitioner delivered at the meeting.

GNX Solar project representative Wayne DeLong summarized the proposal as a multi‑phase project across Adams and Clay townships he described as roughly 7,049 acres with about 5,363 acres located behind perimeter fencing; he said construction for both phases would take about 24 to 36 months once it begins. Donnie DeCastro, GNX vice president of development, said the company would place sufficient surety for decommissioning and commit to water and soil monitoring, and that the project would include agrivoltaic uses such as sheep grazing.

“We are not consuming farmland. We are preserving farmland,” DeCastro told the board,…