Will County Board denies Pivot Energy solar special-use near Shorewood after municipal and resident opposition

The Will County Board voted Feb. 19 to deny a special-use permit requested by Pivot Energy for an 8-megawatt commercial solar facility near Route 52 and County Line Road, after sustained opposition from the village of Shorewood, area residents and several county board members.

Pivot Energy representative Britney Krebsback described the proposal as an 8 MW, roughly 42-acre installation and said the company had offered a mitigation package — including shortening the project lifespan from 40 to 25 years and a $5,000-per-megawatt community investment program, which she said would total $40,000 for the project. “We started community engagement on this project back in 2024,” Krebsback said, and said the firm would coordinate on pre-annexation and development access as the site’s surroundings evolve.

Shorewood officials and counsel urged the board to weigh the village’s comprehensive plan and recent infrastructure investments. Natalie Engel, Shorewood’s economic development director, said the village had made financial commitments — including water and sewer infrastructure — based on a planned residential growth pattern west of the railroad tracks and asked the board to consider the long-term fiscal implications of permitting a solar installation in that location. Jim Murphy, representing the village, told the board the site lies within planning considerations for Shorewood and raised deference to municipal planning.

Multiple board members invoked the LaSalle factors — the legal framework used in county land-use decisions — and several said the site is on the cusp of residential development and should not be taken off the market for decades. In discussion, members repeatedly referenced hardship to adjoining taxing bodies and the incompatibility between the proposed solar use and local comprehensive plans.

After debate, the board conducted a roll-call vote on ORD26-025 (zoning case 25-028). The motion to grant the special use failed on the roll call and the request was denied.

The denial leaves the property angled toward future municipal and residential planning, according to members who noted Shorewood’s ongoing water and sewer investments. No immediate appeal or next procedural step was announced during the meeting; land-use staff previously noted that state siting rules and court precedents affect how compatibility with local comprehensive plans may be considered.

The board’s action followed more than an hour of public comment and attorney presentations and concluded with the board returning to other land-use items on the agenda.