Nelson County hears hours of public testimony on proposed 90 MW Wild Rose solar farm in Gladstone; no decision

Nelson County supervisors heard more than two hours of public testimony on Dec. 10 about a proposed 90-megawatt utility-scale solar farm known as Wild Rose, a Savion (Wild Rose) development planned for timberland near Gladstone.

The project would place roughly 470–550 acres of panels within a larger parcel under site control, connect to the Gladstone 138 kV substation and, the developer says, generate the equivalent of electricity for about 14,000 Virginia homes. Savion’s development director, Erich Miarka, told the Board the company has completed multiple site studies and proposed buffers, vegetative screening, agrivoltaics and a decommissioning plan intended to mitigate environmental and visual impacts.

"This project is designed to be sited to avoid important natural and cultural resources," Miarka said, adding the company plans to preserve mature vegetation around roadways and near residences and to hire a local project liaison during construction.

Planning staff described the permit pathway and noted the application includes technical studies — glint and glare, cultural resources, threatened and endangered species reviews, wetlands delineations, traffic studies and a decommissioning bond — and that the project would need both County special-use approval and state permits. Planning Director Dylan M. Bishop told the Board the application requests up to five years to secure building permits and follow a multi-agency permitting process.

Savion also presented a siting agreement that proposes voluntary and supplemental payments to the County in addition to tax obligations; the developer’s schedule in materials estimates roughly $16 million in County payments over the 40-year project life, including up-front installments contingent on milestones such as site-plan approval and building permit issuance.

Supporters at the public hearing said the project would bring construction jobs, some local hiring through a workforce partnership (SHINE), quiet operations once built, tax revenue and potential agrivoltaics for grazing or pollinator habitat. "This is an opportunity to provide new revenue for our schools and county programs," said Mike Tuso, a Gladstone-area resident and electrical engineer, citing Savion’s revenue estimates.

Opponents focused on watershed, soils and habitat risks that could follow clear-cutting and large-area land conversion. Multiple residents raised erosion and stormwater-runoff concerns for Owens Creek and Carter Creek, questioned long-term decommissioning enforcement and said the size of the ground-mounted arrays would alter local character. "We should not set a precedent of industrial-scale solar on agriculturally zoned timberlands without exhaustive local study," said James Bibb, a South District resident.

Speakers also debated where practical limits on solar siting should fall in Nelson County; developers said grid access and steep slopes would constrain where utility-scale solar is feasible, while some residents warned that accepting one large project could lead to additional proposals in other rural areas.

Planning Commission members previously voted that the Wild Rose proposal was not in substantial accord with the County’s Comprehensive Plan and recommended denial; the developer has appealed that determination to the Board. The Board did not render a final decision at the Dec. 10 meeting and declined to vote that evening, instead scheduling continued review and a Dec. 18 joint work session with the Planning Commission.

What’s next: The County will continue public hearings and site-plan review; state permitting (DEQ permit-by-rule and other agency approvals) and an SCC interconnection review are required before construction can begin.