Sylvania council delays decision on ground‑mounted solar permit after neighbors raise historic‑district concerns

Sylvania City Council on Monday, Oct. 20, 2025, postponed action on SUP 3‑2025, a special‑use permit sought by petitioners identified in the record as Ben Millhiern and Amanda Miliron to install ground‑mounted solar panels at 5916 Main Street.

The petition had been reviewed twice by the Municipal Planning Commission, which recommended approval on Sept. 10, 2025, by a 3–1 vote after receiving three letters of neighbor support and additional site photos and renderings. At the city hearing, the applicant and contractor described the structure, neighbors spoke both for and against the proposal, and council members asked for additional technical and visual information before deciding.

Ben Millhiern, who identified himself as a First Solar employee, told the council he has worked on the underlying technology for years and described the project as a way to repurpose an old, unusable tennis court on the roughly two‑acre lot. “I’m just very excited to actually install them, in my backyard,” Millhiern said. Supporters who spoke at the hearing emphasized personal energy security: neighbor Stefan Pomerinky said local generation matters when outages occur and cited examples of grid strain elsewhere.

Neighbors opposed to the permit focused on the property’s location within a historic part of downtown Sylvania and on site visibility from a longtime adjacent home. Steve Miller, whose 103‑year‑old house abuts the parcel, said: “Having solar panels does not fit into our neighborhood, at least this part of Sylvania…We don’t want to look at it.” Miller also raised a separate dispute over a previously installed fence, telling council that the petitioners’ prior work had not matched earlier promises.

The petitioners’ contractor, Cameron Tillkins, described the proposed structure’s safety and siting: the array would be steel, grounded and bonded, have no moving parts and be lower than existing perimeter fencing. He said the panels would be about 8 feet 2 inches tall while an existing fence is roughly 9 feet (he cited a 9 foot 2 inch measurement reported by a neighbor). Tillkins said renderings submitted to the planning commission and three‑dimensional models show the structure would not be visible from the street or, in his view, from the objecting neighbor’s house because of existing fences and mature vegetation.

Council members pressed for clarification on safety, noise and visibility, and several asked to visit the site and review the 3‑D renderings submitted to the planning commission. Mary Westfall, who chaired the public‑hearing sequence, said council members were “not ready to make a decision tonight” and that additional information was needed. No vote was taken on the special‑use permit; the matter will return for further consideration.

Background: SUP 3‑2025 was referred to the planning commission by council in August 2025. The planning commission heard the petition twice (Aug. 13 and Sept. 10) before recommending approval by a 3–1 vote.