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Planning Commission workshop maps solar and BESS eligibility; consultants estimate about 20,000 eligible acres under draft rules
Summary
Staff and consultants presented a map exercise applying transmission proximity, road access and setback filters to show where community-scale solar and battery storage could be sited; the draft rules produced an estimate of roughly 20,000 suitable acres, prompting debate on rezoning versus overlay approaches.
County planning staff and consultant Rachel Granrath presented a mapping exercise showing how draft siting criteria (proximity to transmission, setbacks from non-participating uses, road access and visual buffers from notable features) would limit the pool of eligible agricultural parcels for community-scale solar and battery energy storage (BESS).
Granrath summarized the mapping result: "We did an estimate on acreage and believe this is about 20,000 acres total." Commissioners responded with questions about whether the map should be prescriptive and whether economic constraints (distance to transmission or substations) should factor into siting rules.
Commissioners debated whether to: (a) keep solar as a conditional-use option in the Agricultural District, (b) create a standalone 'energy' zone, or (c) add a solar overlay that identifies eligible areas without rezoning. Staff cautioned that rezoning many parcels to an industrial category could be legally fraught and would allow a full suite of industrial uses unless the new district or overlay is carefully tailored. Several commissioners expressed concern about protecting agricultural land and the county’s comprehensive-plan goals while enabling renewable projects.
The workshop also explored practical details: proposed site setbacks (100 feet from property lines, 300 feet from non-participating occupied buildings, 50 feet from public rights-of-way), maximum panel height at full tilt (commonly proposed at 20 feet), and a county-level cap option (discussed but not settled). No formal policy decision was made; staff will refine language for public notice and hearings.
