McHenry County board appeals approves two Yam Solar community projects, 7-0

WOODSTOCK, Ill. — The McHenry County Zoning Board of Appeals voted unanimously on Dec. 2 to approve conditional-use permits for two community-solar projects proposed by Yam Solar 1 LLC and Yam Solar 2 LLC, clearing the petitions to move to the County Board with nine staff conditions.

The projects cover a combined area described in the application as approximately 60.74 acres (PIN 1236276002) at the northwest corner of Pleasant Valley and Sunnyside Road in Seneca Township. The board approved the petitions after hearing a multi-part presentation from the applicant team and extended public comment from neighbors.

In a presentation to the board, Adeel Zaidi, president of Solar Ray Farmers, said the proposals are intended as agrivoltaic community-solar projects that would preserve agricultural uses while generating renewable power. “We are excited here to present our project of Yam Solar 1 and Yam Solar 2,” Zaidi said during the applicant’s initial remarks (applicant testimony, Dec. 2). Tim Callahan of Development Engine Partners described the projects’ local economic case and estimated an annual property-tax contribution from the facility in the range the team provided in the hearing materials, which the applicant characterized as roughly $45,000–$60,000 per year (applicant estimate).

Technical details presented by the team and county staff included: panels mounted on post-driven racking (no large concrete foundations), inverter and equipment pads located near site corners, retention and enhancement of existing tree screening on three sides, and plans for native-plant pollinator mixes beneath arrays. Bob Walker, the applicant’s civil engineer with Boto Consulting, said the design follows state setbacks and noted existing distribution lines nearby that make interconnection feasible. The applicant confirmed there is no battery-storage component in the current plans.

Board members asked detailed questions about noise, surface drainage, wetlands buffers and construction impacts. On noise, the applicant said the primary audible equipment would be inverters on pads placed well inside the parcel, and that nighttime operations and panel rotation would not produce audible noise at property lines; Walker told the board, “At night, there is no noise” when explaining inverter and panel behavior. The team told the board pile-driving for post installation is expected to produce the loudest sound for a limited period (estimated 4–6 weeks of daytime work), with regular construction hours planned between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Residents during public comment urged caution. Frank Zangara, who said he lives on Emery Lane adjacent to the parcel, warned that disturbing the land could increase localized flooding and asked whether additional culverts or conveyance would be installed. “Whenever you start disturbing that land, we’re gonna get more flooding,” Zangara said. The applicant’s engineers responded that the only earth movement would be equipment pads and access drives, that wetland buffers would be preserved, and that the proposed vegetation mixes are intended to reduce runoff relative to row crops.

County staff reported that the parcels are zoned A-1 agricultural, the future land-use designation is agricultural, required notices were posted and that staff had found county and state standards met for both petitions. Staff also noted that the McHenry County Soil and Water Conservation District report and an endangered-species consultation were on file.

During board deliberations the chair presented nine proposed conditions prepared by staff; the board adopted those conditions and then approved each petition on motions moved by Mister Eldridge and seconded (first petition seconded by Miss Beverly, second petition seconded by Miss Gardner). The approvals were unanimous, 7–0, and the board directed that both petitions be forwarded to the County Board for its consideration.

What’s next: The applications and the board’s recommended conditions will be included in the County Board packet for final action. The applicant said they plan community outreach later in January to answer additional neighbor questions and refine vegetative screening and land-management plans based on local input.

Reporting note: Technical figures (acreage, PIN 1236276002), the applicant’s tax-revenue estimate and construction-duration estimates are drawn from applicant testimony and materials provided at the hearing; the board and staff repeatedly noted that final engineering and the county’s stormwater review will govern detailed designs and any additional mitigation measures.