Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Renewable Energy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Developer pitches 1 MW community solar and battery storage on village-owned Douglas Road parcel; trustees request separation of lease and zoning approvals
Summary
Synergy Power presented a proposal for a 1 MW solar-plus-storage project on a 9.52-acre village-owned parcel off Douglas Road, offering a 20‑year lease with upfront cash and resident subscription benefits; trustees asked the developer to separate a property lease option from the later zoning/use-permit review and requested additional wetlands and storage details.
William (Bill) Fam, co-founder of Synergy Power, gave trustees an overview of a proposed 1 megawatt solar-plus-storage project on a 9.52-acre village-owned parcel off Douglas Road. Fam said the site could support a roughly 1 MW solar array with storage sized to the state’s rules; he described Synergy’s municipal experience, a 20-year lease option at $2,750 per acre in year one (escalating 2% annually), a roughly $100,000 first-year lease payment, and an offer to provide village and resident meters a 15% discount on the energy portion of their utility bills through a utility partner subscription program.
Fam told trustees Synergy has experience developing municipal projects and emphasized community benefits, noting prior projects that included low-income programs and upfront cash contributions. He said the federal investment tax credit plays a critical role in project economics and that projects must safe-harbor work by July 4, 2026, to preserve the tax credit option.
Trustees pressed the developer on process and environmental issues. Several trustees said they were uncomfortable approving zoning at the same time the village is offering the site as landowner and asked that the village’s lease/option agreement explicitly preserve the plan‑commission’s independent zoning review. Trustees also sought delineation of mapped wetlands and the existing village detention basin on the property; village staff said those features exist and that a field wetland delineation and environmental survey would be completed during the option feasibility period.
On battery storage, Fam described typical equipment as shipping-container-sized battery units (20-foot containers) and said the state has rigorous electrical, safety and fire codes; he said storage pairing is growing with recent state legislation encouraging storage deployment. Trustees asked for additional documentation about buffering, fencing, and interconnection (underground service where possible, with overhead tie-in to utility poles at the nearest interconnection point).
Trustees directed staff and the developer to separate the short lease-option agreement from any zoning approval so the plan commission can independently review a future use‑permit or rezoning request; Synergy agreed to add clarifying language to the lease option and return with additional site study results before formal zoning review.
