Reno County planning commission narrows commercial solar project rules, sets 1,200‑acre cap and 3‑mile buffer

Reno County Planning Commission members on Jan. 16, 2025, debated and revised a proposed Article 26 to the county planning and zoning regulations intended to regulate commercial (utility‑scale) solar energy systems, ultimately setting a 1,200‑acre contiguous maximum and a 3‑mile separation between projects while voting not to require detailed decommissioning language inside the zoning regulation text.

The discussion matters because the rules will shape which solar developments can seek conditional‑use permits in Reno County, how large a single project may be, and what technical or contractual steps the county will expect developers to take before and after project operation.

Mark, a county planning staff member, walked the commission through edits in the packet, including a proposed definition of "unusual and extraordinary expenses" (expenses above the standard $300 conditional‑use fee) and a suite of items the commission had requested for inclusion or clarification. "Anything that goes above and beyond the normal conditional use permit fee of $300 will be charged," Mark told the commission when describing how extra county costs would be recovered from applicants. He reviewed proposed limits on project size, separation between projects, wildlife connectivity language, submittal requirements (including input from the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, groundwater districts or USDA), and…