Board approves two large solar projects, Ag grant, road work and other items

The Imperial County Board of Supervisors approved a slate of land‑use and administrative actions at its public meeting, including approvals tied to two large solar and battery storage projects, authorization to bid three road‑rehabilitation projects, and a $100,000 Ag Benefit grant for Hopewell High School’s Future Farmers of America program.

The actions affecting renewable projects consisted of multi‑part approvals—water‑supply assessments, adoption of final environmental documents (mitigated negative declarations), a mitigation monitoring and reporting program, general plan amendments, zone changes, conditional use permits for generation and battery storage, and conditional use permits for on‑site groundwater wells. The board also approved public service agreements for both projects as part of the conditions of approval.

Why it matters: The solar and battery projects cleared major discretionary approvals that change land‑use designations and allow utility‑scale energy development on specific parcels in the county’s renewable energy overlay or adjacent parcels. Those approvals move the projects from planning toward construction permitting and require subsequent developer obligations under the county’s public benefit framework.

Votes at a glance (items and outcomes as recorded in the meeting record): - Item 15 — Plans and specifications authorized for public bidding for McCabe Cove Road, East Villa Road and Villa Lane (County projects 6862, 6865 and 6866 as stated on the agenda). Motion carried (board recorded the motion as carried; the clerk recorded a 5‑0 vote in the meeting record). The county presentation identified an estimated project cost of roughly $800,000.

- Item 16 — Recognized the federal holiday declared for the passing of President Jimmy Carter and authorized 8‑hour comp holiday pay for 24‑hour Fire Department personnel. Motion carried (recorded as carried). No further fiscal detail was presented in the public record.

- Item 17 — Ag Benefit Program grant to Hopewell High School (Future Farmers of America): $100,000 recommended by the Ag Benefit Committee for program upgrades, a vehicle purchase and tools. Motion carried, recorded as five‑zero.

- Items 22 (Northstar 1 solar and battery storage, near Niland) and 23 (Northstar 3 solar and battery storage, near Salton City) — for each project the board approved: a water supply assessment; adoption of the final initial study/mitigated negative declaration and the mitigation monitoring and reporting program; a general plan amendment; a zone change ordinance; a conditional use permit for the solar generation and battery energy storage facility; and a conditional use permit for construction and operation of a commercial groundwater well. Each of those motions was put and the board recorded the motions as carried. The meeting transcript records the motions as carried but does not give roll‑call tallies for every line item; where a specific tally was announced the clerk noted the motion carried.

- Items 24 and 25 — Public service agreements with the project developers for Northstar 1 SES LLC and the Northstar 3 project were placed on the agenda and approved consistent with the county’s public benefit program. Motions carried.

What the record shows about votes and procedure: The transcript records the board approving each item by motion and then the clerk announcing the motion carried. Several items were explicitly recorded as five‑zero; for other items the transcript records only that the motion “carries” without a roll‑call tally read into the record. Where the meeting showed a motion and second, that pairing is reflected in the board minutes as moved/seconded but specific roll‑call votes are not always printed in the transcript.

Context and next steps: For the solar and battery projects the county’s approvals authorize the land‑use changes and environmental findings needed to proceed to project‑level permitting and construction planning. The conditional use permits for groundwater wells and the water supply assessments were part of the board’s determinations that water resources and mitigation conditions are adequate under the county’s environmental review process. The public service agreements accompanying the project approvals implement the county’s established public‑benefit expectations for large energy developments.

The board’s formal meeting record is the authoritative source for final vote tallies and ordinance text; interested parties should consult the county clerk or the published minutes for the official vote counts and for full copies of approvals, ordinances and public service agreements.