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Shorewood board votes to object to three proposed large solar farms near village limits
Summary
Trustees approved three separate resolutions objecting to special‑use permits for proposed commercial solar farms (Black Road Solar 1 & 2; Pivot Energy), citing impacts on future residential growth, water planning and traffic safety; staff noted typical commercial solar farms are ~4.99 MW (~30 acres) and equivalent, in land use, to many housing units.
The Village of Shorewood passed three separate resolutions formally objecting to county special‑use permit applications for commercial solar facilities proposed near the village: Black Road Solar 1 LLC, Black Road Solar 2 LLC, and a Pivot Energy proposal. Staff and trustees said the projects—each typically proposed at about 4.99 megawatts and roughly 30 acres—could impede planned residential development, affect village water planning tied to the lake water project, and create land‑use and safety concerns at intersections that IDOT has identified as hazardous.
Planning staff observed that a 30‑acre solar farm can be roughly equivalent in land use to about 75 housing units in a low‑density residential scenario; for larger combined proposals (Pivot Energy), staff said the acreage could be the equivalent of several hundred homes. As planning staff put it, "typically, these solar farms are looking to build 4.99 megawatt facilities... That typically translates to a 30 acre solar farm." Trustees voted to file separate objections with the county; those objections will be included in the county docket and heard at the planning and zoning level before any county board action.
