Russell County approves two 5 MW community solar siting agreements after public review, adds volunteer-fire funding

The Russell County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to approve siting agreements for two 5-megawatt community solar projects proposed by New Leaf Energy near River Mountain Road, authorizing local permits and adding a voluntary payment to county volunteer fire and emergency services.

The projects—River Mountain Solar 1 LLC and River Mountain Solar 2 LLC—are each described in the presentation as roughly 5 megawatts, with about 24 acres fenced and approximately 7–8 acres of panel array footprint. Jessie Robinson, senior project developer with New Leaf Energy, told the board the projects have already secured capacity under Appalachian Power’s new shared-solar program and that each 5-MW site could support about 1,000 residential subscribers in the program. “There’s no cost to subscribe,” Robinson said, describing the sign-up as first-come, first-served for eligible Appalachian Power customers and adding that the company would prioritize Russell County residents when subscribers are selected.

Robinson outlined benefits included in the siting agreement: a $20,000-per-megawatt payment to the county (roughly $100,000 per project), a $50,000-per-project allowance to reimburse site-plan or inspection costs (with unused funds to the county), a local-first subscription commitment, potential expanded local tax revenue, and an offer to make community donations—Robinson cited a possible $5,000 contribution per project to the Belfast‑Rosedale Volunteer Fire Department.

Scott Foster, advising the developer on legal terms through Gentry Locke, described how the community payments would be handled: “So we pay the county, out of the time assigned to the site in agreement, then you all make that…