HOBART — A Minnesota company Thursday moved one step closer to building a solar farm on 49th Avenue after some concerns, but no objections, were aired at a public hearing on the project.
The Board of Zoning Appeals unanimously approved a petition for conditional use by Hobart Solar LLC of Mendota Heights, Minn., to build 4,576 solar panels on about 10 acres of a 50-acre parcel on the northwest corner of Liverpool Road and 49th Avenue.
The solar company would sell power it generates to Northern Indiana Public Service Co.
Brad Wilson, project manager with Hobart Solar, said the panels would be photovoltaic solar modules similar to those mounted on a house, but they would be placed on the ground. He said rows of the panels would be placed just above the ground with natural ground cover such as clover or alfalfa growing underneath.
Wilson said there would be no emissions, chemicals, pollution, noise or glare from the panels.
Thomas Post, regional ecologist with Indiana Department of Natural Resources, which owns 54 acres adjacent to the proposed site of the solar farm, expressed concern about the location of the solar panels, drainage and easement issues.
“We need to continue to have access to our property,” he said.
Post warned that the state agency does prescribed burns on its property, adding there have been large natural wildfires in the area, as well.
Local environmentalist Sandy O’Brien requested that the developer place the solar panels closer to 49th Avenue, even though it means cutting down more trees than if they were placed elsewhere on the site.
“If you concentrate closer to 49th Avenue there would be less fragmentation of wildlife and less effect from the burns,” O’Brien said.
She also asked that the company not mitigate the loss of trees by planting new trees, saying it would be better left in a prairie state.
“I hope this will be a win-win for Hobart. Hopefully, the back 40 acres of the property will be protected at little or no cost to the DNR, which doesn’t have much money,” O’Brien said.
The matter of security also was raised. The company said it planned to have someone check on the property periodically for maintenance and damage, but one resident pointed out there has been vandalism in the area.
Chris Little, also a project manager with Hobart LLC, said some type of security would be needed at the site, whether it is a security camera or something else. He also said ash from the controlled burns could be a potential concern for the panels.
Wilson said they would get a better idea of where the panels will be placed on the land as they move forward with their engineers.
He said the panels that would be purchased have a 25-year warranty but have a life expectancy of 40 to 50 years. He said, however, this project has a projected lifespan of 15 years.
What happens after 15 years?
“That’s the million-dollar question. Either we’ll decommission the panels or renew (the contract with NIPSCO),” Little said.
Wilson said they’ll probably come before the Plan Commission in May or June for a site plan review.