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Residents press Dearborn County to review solar ordinance amid reports of site work
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Summary
Multiple residents urged the commissioners to pause or review commercial solar permitting after alleging off-record site work and lease solicitations by a developer (Linea Energy); county planning staff said no permits were on file and that plan-commission review or MS4/Soil & Water thresholds apply.
A group of residents urged Dearborn County commissioners on Jan. 6 to review the county's solar ordinance and consider a moratorium on commercial-scale solar applications after alleging site work and lease solicitations by a developer they identified as Linea Energy.
Residents said they had gathered petitions and signatures and described apparent site activity on Benning Road, including grading and a new road. Robert Rowan and Jim Red Elk said neighbors had been approached to sign easements or leases and referenced a Linea Energy project called "Sunman" on the company's website advertised at 195 megawatts. "This is potentially a 1,500 acre development," one resident said, and asked for an immediate moratorium while the county's Article 19 solar provisions were reviewed.
Planning director Nicole Bailey told the board the zoning office had no permit applications on file for the site and that county MS4 and Soil & Water departments were reviewing whether disturbance met thresholds (one acre and above) that would trigger erosion-control and permitting requirements. County attorney staff said that a moratorium or ordinance changes would need to start at the plan commission and that the existing conditional-use and board-of-zoning-appeals processes are governed by statute.
Commissioners encouraged residents to petition the plan commission if they wanted a moratorium and asked staff to continue monitoring any reported site disturbance. The board did not adopt a moratorium at the Jan. 6 meeting.
