Will County planning panel declines to recommend Earthrise’s 6,100‑acre ‘Pride of the Prairie’ solar special‑use permit after hours of testimony

The Will County Planning and Zoning Commission heard more than four hours of sworn testimony March 31 on Earthrise’s proposed Pride of the Prairie commercial solar facility before voting 4–2 not to forward a favorable recommendation on the special‑use permit.

Residents, township officials and union representatives framed the debate in starkly different terms. Opponents described the proposal as an outsized industrial intrusion on productive farmland — various speakers repeatedly cited a project footprint of roughly 6,100 acres — and pressed the commission to delay or deny approval until road‑use agreements, drainage studies, Army Corps reviews and clearer decommissioning assurances were in place. "This hearing by design is a mega permit," said Andrea Bombard of Manhattan Township, who urged the commission to "table this vote" and asked why municipal solar options such as parking‑lot arrays had not been pursued.

Union and labor representatives urged approval. Paul Garin of the Chicago Area Labor–Management Cooperation Education Trust and officials from International Union of…