Marshall County BZA approves amended findings denying Tamarac Solar Energy’s special-use application

The Marshall County Board of Zoning Appeals voted Dec. 16 to approve amended findings of fact explaining its earlier denial of Tamarac Solar Energy’s special-use application, 24BZA45, after a November court remand.

Board counsel informed members the court (identified in the record as the "Allens Peirier Court") had ordered the case returned to the BZA for "the entry of specific findings of fact" explaining the board’s decision. Counsel presented a draft set of findings and asked members to review and identify additions or corrections before a vote.

Members requested explicit language linking the denial to the county’s comprehensive plan protections for farmland and open space. One board member urged adding a subsection (noted in the draft as a proposed "13e") that would state the decision was consistent with comprehensive-plan provisions favoring preservation of open or wooded corridors. Board members also pressed to include findings that cited potential impacts to wildlife and natural habitat in the…