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Developer says redesign reduces visual impact of proposed large‑scale solar site
Summary
At first reading the council heard a developer presentation for a large‑scale solar project in Macomb’s extraterritorial jurisdiction; the developer described setbacks and a vegetative buffer added after neighbor feedback and noted planning commission approval with conditions.
At a first reading, the Macomb City Council considered an ordinance to authorize a special‑use permit for a large‑scale solar project on a parcel in the city’s extraterritorial zoning jurisdiction on North 1500 Road.
Tess Buchanan, a representative for the developer, said the project meets the city’s zoning and siting requirements and that the site plan was revised after the planning commission hearing and neighbor conversations. She said panels were moved away from one neighbor and more than a 500‑foot setback from eastern neighbors would be maintained; the design also adds a vegetative buffer along the southern property line to reduce visual impacts.
City attorney (speaker 9) told the council the owners are Tim and Kimberly Bankston, the applicant is Ginger Solar LLC and Cultivate Power LLC is listed as the developer. The property is approximately 1.14 miles west of U.S. Highway 67 and lies outside the city limits but inside the city’s extraterritorial zoning jurisdiction. The planning commission voted 6–2 to grant the special‑use permit with conditions at its Nov. 19 hearing, the attorney said.
The item was presented as a first reading and was placed on the agenda for further discussion at next week’s Committee of the Whole. No council vote on the ordinance was taken at the meeting.
The developer asked to return at the next meeting with additional details and said it appreciated neighbor engagement during the planning process.
