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Mr. Hawk says revised tree plan would screen solar farm; neighbors disagree
Summary
At a Lee County zoning hearing, petitioner representative Mister Hawk said a revised planting plan of 14 trees on the host parcel would address visual impacts from a proposed solar farm; a neighboring Baker family said they lacked space and raised contract concerns. The board recessed to allow the zoning administrator to reconsider.
Mister Hawk, the petitioner and project representative for the proposed solar array, told the Lee County hearing that the developer moved the array south and offered a revised tree-screening plan to reduce the project's visual impact on nearby homes. He said the project team agreed to “shift the project to the southern 0.5 of the property, to put it 1000 feet away from the roadway,” and proposed planting 14 trees along the host parcel’s northeastern boundary to screen the Baker residence.
The plan, Mister Hawk said, reflected the ordinance’s screening options and amounted to roughly one-third of the original northern-tree proposal. He told the board that two neighboring property owners waived the tree screen in exchange for payment but that the Bakers did not accept the payment amount. Amanda Baker, a neighbor, told the board, “We don't have room on our property for these trees.” The presiding official recessed the hearing so the zoning administrator can reconsider whether the new plan should affect her earlier determination; the hearing is scheduled to resume Aug. 26 at 5:00 p.m.
