OGLE COUNTY, Ill. (WIFR) – The Ogle County Zoning Board of Appeals reviewed a proposal Tuesday night for a community solar farm planned outside Mount Morris.
The proposal, presented by Cypress Creek Renewables, calls for a 4.99-megawatt community solar facility on agricultural land near Willow Road. According to county documents, the project would cover about 35 acres of a 153-acre farm.
During public comment, Jeremy Nesemeier, a nearby property owner, told the board he supports renewable energy, but has concerns about the project’s proximity to Mount Morris.
“I don’t disagree with solar everywhere. I disagree with this solar farm this close to Mount Morris, this close to my property, this close to a public golf course,” Nesemeier said.
Nesemeier also says he is the closest neighboring property to the proposed site and plans to build a home there, adding that he believes the solar panels would be visible.
Nesemeier told the board he worries the project could affect property values in the future.
“I’m going to build my forever home on a property that may already be looking at a decrease in property value,” said Nesemeier. “If property values decrease, we are paying less taxes to the county and to the village of Mount Morris.”
Ryan Anderson, a project developer with Cypress Creek Renewables, says the project is designed to help meet Illinois’ clean energy goals and provide power to local subscribers.
“Solar is not the answer for everything, but it is a good tool to have in the tool kit for our energy goals in the future,” said Anderson. “We feel like it is a good location it’s kind of separated by a tree line outside of Mt. Morris.”
Anderson told the board the solar farm would operate for at least 25 years, with lease agreements allowing it to remain in place for up to 40 years.
“If we make a 25-year decision that negativity affects our property values, you’re affecting people’s dreams, and I believe you’re exacerbating the potential to decay with the entire community by making our effort to borrow, that won’t even improve our properties,” said Nesemeier.
Concerns about the location were also raised by Rob Urish, an alternate member of the zoning board and chair of the Mount Morris Economic Development Committee. While speaking outside the meeting, Urish says he supports solar energy but believes large-scale projects should be placed on less productive land.
“I saw a soil map where the productivity index was around 130. That’s not where you want to put a solar. You want to put a solar farm where the ground is poorer and difficult to till,” said Urish.
The zoning board voted 3–2 Tuesday night on the proposal. Members are expected to review the project again at 10 a.m., Tuesday, January 13.
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