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 Yellow River corridor.

Concerns about construction impacts were raised in detail. A member described prolonged, heavy construction activity — "constant hammering" — that could harm nearby residents, including residents with disabilities and people who work at night, and said the board should find that large-scale construction would be inconsistent with surrounding uses. The board agreed to add language addressing the scale of construction and its effects on neighboring properties.

Board members also pointed to testimony in the record about property values and individual purchases. Counsel and a member cited testimony from Shannon Luneta, identified in the record as a local real-estate broker, and described a case in which the Summers family bought a home they believed would be surrounded by farmland but instead would be enclosed by the project; the board said that circumstance supported a finding about undisclosed impacts to property expectations.

Members raised concerns about village growth, saying the project would surround and limit expansion of small municipalities such as Bur Oak. The board asked for a finding noting an adverse impact on the potential for village growth, tying that concern to comprehensive-plan language encouraging village development.

Environmental issues were discussed, including whether potential lead or cadmium contamination could originate from panels or the mounting posts; members noted that posts are galvanized and raised the possibility of zinc or other metals in the ground. The board asked that the findings reflect environmental and materials concerns documented in the record.

A public commenter questioned decommissioning assumptions in the application record, saying the file’s numbers suggested far lower costs to landfill than to recycle and that the project lacked a concrete recycling plan for panels at end of life. The commenter said the record listed roughly "a dollar 38 to the landfill" versus "$28 to recycle" and warned panels were likely to go to a landfill absent a viable recycling option.

After discussing and confirming the proposed additions, a board member moved to approve the findings of fact "as written in based on the additions," another member seconded, and the board voted in favor. The chair declared the motion carried; the board instructed staff to finalize the findings with the approved edits, have the president sign them and submit the findings and transcript to the court as required by the remand.

The meeting record notes that two alternates who had previously been appointed did not participate in the decision after Tamarac’s lawyers raised a paperwork question about their appointment; the board proceeded with the three voting members present. The board adjourned after completing the single agenda item.

The county did not adopt new policy at the meeting; it approved a finalized explanation of the board’s earlier denial to satisfy the court’s request. Staff will prepare a final document incorporating the board’s additions and submit it to the court for review.