Warren County amends rural zoning code to regulate solar installations; commissioners approve changes
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Summary
The county approved text amendments that add principal and accessory solar definitions, set minimum site sizes and setbacks, increase public‑notice distance, and adopt a 20% on‑site generation cap consistent with PUCO guidance.
County zoning staff presented proposed text amendments to the Warren County Rural Zoning Code that add clarified definitions and standards for solar energy systems and other technical refinements to lot and driveway standards. The Planning and Zoning staff and the Rural Zoning Commission recommended approval; the Board of Commissioners adopted the amendments by roll call vote.
Key provisions approved
- New categories: accessory solar, principal solar production (ground/pole/roof/building mounted). - Minimum site size for a principal ground‑mounted facility: 12 acres (facilities below that threshold cannot be permitted as principal solar production facilities under the new language). - Pole‑mounted arrays: maximum structure height of 15 feet; roof‑mounted arrays may extend up to 10 feet above the roofline when mounted to a principal building. - Production limit: county language references the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio policy that, in many circumstances, restricts distributed generation to producing no more than 20% above on‑site load for certain interconnection classes; the presenter said the 20% cap was adopted to align with PUCO expectations. - Setbacks and notifications: a 300‑foot setback from dwellings for ground systems and an expanded public‑notification radius for conditional use and similar reviews increased from 500 to 1,000 feet. - Decommissioning: the code requires removal of non‑functioning equipment within six months and site restoration within 30 days after removal of earth disturbance.
County staff and commissioners discussed enforcement and the contingency that a developer or lessee could abandon a site. Staff said the county can enforce the zoning requirements, and that the decommissioning obligations should be addressed contractually between landowner and developer; the county can pursue enforcement or, in the worst case, clean‑up and place an assessment on the property.
Vote and next steps
The board voted unanimously (Commissioners Grossman, Young and Jones) to adopt the proposed zoning text amendments. Staff said the amendments bring the county a regulatory framework for smaller solar projects (below state siting board thresholds) and noted future revisions will likely follow as the industry and state practice evolve.