Christian Fiscal Court approved some measures concerning solar farms in the county at Tuesday morning’s meeting, including a new resolution concerning the Dogwood Corners solar project.
It was a full house in the meeting room, and there were plenty of public comments about the subject, with many of those against the project saying they’re not against solar panels or energy, but they are against the location of the proposed farm and want to see them regulated. Brian Burkhead of Greenville Road says a group has worked on what they would like to see in an ordinance, including more landowner responsibility and a minimum distance between the panels at property lines.
That prompted a motion from magistrates that passed, with County Attorney John Soyars saying he is now tasked with reviewing that draft ordinance and existing law to craft an ordinance that the court could consider.
The new resolution that was passed unanimously concerning the Dogwood Corners project specifically makes it so Fiscal Court can choose to withhold issuing bonds until standards are met that the court approves.
Fiscal Court recently rescinded a prior resolution that 14 established a preliminary agreement for the county to later issue up to $220 million in bonds to assist with financing of the project via an ordinance, which would effectively allow Oriden to get a lower interest rate on its financing of the project.