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Davenport council adopts solar zoning changes; council members decline local size limits
Summary
Council approved an amendment to Title 17 zoning (case OARDD25-02) to allow solar farms as a principal use and freestanding solar panels as an accessory use; the ordinance contains no municipal size cap, and staff noted larger projects may fall under Iowa Utility Board jurisdiction.
Davenport, Iowa — The Davenport City Council on Wednesday approved an amendment to Title 17 of the municipal code that allows solar farms as a principal use and freestanding solar panels as an accessory use, concluding a year‑long review of solar siting that council members said had spanned multiple councils and committees.
"We've got a good ordinance in front of us that balances protecting development land and allowing for solar in specific places," Alderman Grip said during debate, thanking staff for their work. The ordinance (case OARDD25-02) passed on a unanimous roll‑call vote.
A member of the public, Cheryl Shagna of the third ward, urged the council to include explicit size limits in the ordinance. "I think you should include in the ordinance...that you limit the size of the solar farm," she said, citing large multi‑hundred‑acre installations she had seen across the Midwest and suggesting a formula to dedicate a portion of acreage to public park use as mitigation.
Council members and staff responded that the ordinance is a comprehensive package covering both accessory solar (carports, rooftop, freestanding panels) and solar farms, and that the city does not set an explicit acreage cap. Staff told the council that projects above a certain threshold could fall under the Iowa Utilities Board's jurisdiction, which places some siting decisions at the state level rather than municipal control.
Alderman Vasquez encouraged use of multipurpose sites such as carport solar and urged incorporating solar into new developments as they are planned. The council did not add a municipal size limit; the motion to adopt the amended Title 17 language passed by roll call.
The ordinance was read for a third consideration and approved as amended in committee. The council did not take additional immediate action beyond adoption; staff will administer the zoning changes and apply existing procedural review processes for permit applications.
