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by Elizabeth Haikes
DAMASCUS TOWNSHIP, WAYNE CO. (WOLF) — A crowd packed the Damascus Township meeting Wednesday night as residents, township officials, and attorneys debated the proposed WA-Cochecton 2 LLC Solar Project, a utility-scale solar facility that opponents say could dramatically reshape the rural character of the Eighmy Road area. Dozens also waited outside the building as the room was at capacity.
The proposed project would bring an approximately 18-megawatt alternating current solar facility across more than 100 acres spanning both Damascus and Oregon Townships. Plans include more than 36,000 solar panels, access roads, stormwater facilities, fencing, and related infrastructure.
But much of the debate centered around tree clearing.
Residents and township officials argued developers are attempting to calculate tree clearing percentages by combining acreage from both townships, even though Damascus and Oregon operate under entirely different zoning structures.
Damascus Township has zoning ordinances and alternative regulations already in place, including a restriction limiting tree clearing to 25% of a property. Oregon Township, however, does not currently have zoning ordinances governing projects like the proposed solar farm.
According to testimony presented during the meeting, the Damascus portion of the project alone would involve approximately 64.2 acres of tree clearing on a roughly 103-acre property, equaling nearly 62% of the Damascus acreage.
However, developers have argued the clearing percentage drops to approximately 24.9% when acreage from both townships is combined into one overall calculation.
Bill Shaughnessy, a realtor whose family owns property on Eighmy Road, accused developers of attempting to work around Damascus Township’s ordinance by combining acreage from both municipalities.
“Right here on their own information. Total clear Damascus Township acres 64.2%,” Shaughnessy said during testimony. “That’s the tree clearing area analysis, 64.2% of trees in Damascus are what they’re going to cut, not 25%.”
Shaughnessy also testified that, in his professional opinion as a realtor, nearby property values would decrease if the project moves forward.
“If any of you right now live anywhere near that solar farm [and] go to sell the property, you legally bylaw should disclose that there is a solar farm going in,” he said. “The solar farm will decrease the value of the property. That is my expert opinion.”
Residents repeatedly argued the issue is not solely about private property rights, but about broader impacts to the surrounding community, including environmental changes, aesthetics, wildlife displacement, and emergency response concerns.
Crystal Patterson, who also owns property in the area, defended Damascus Township officials and their existing ordinances.
“We’re grateful to Damascus. They have done their due diligence,” Patterson said. “They have put ordinance in place to put protections for our community. We work here, we live here, we raise our kids here, we pay our taxes here. They have done their due diligence to create ordinances for thoughtful community planning.”
Patterson additionally raised concerns about emergency preparedness and whether local fire departments would have the resources necessary to respond to potential incidents involving a large-scale solar facility.
Others spoke about environmental impacts, including wetlands and wildlife habitat disruption.
One resident testified that he fears the project could displace wildlife, including an eagle’s nest located on his property.
Attorneys representing the solar developers objected to several claims throughout the meeting, arguing that required environmental reviews have already been submitted, including a Pennsylvania Natural Diversity Inventory (PNDI) study and emergency response planning.
Damascus Township Engineer Lewis Cozza also presented concerns with the submitted plans, including setbacks, wetlands, fencing details, vegetation buffers, and lack of detail on system components.
Cozza stated the plans indicate approximately 64.2 acres of tree clearing on the Damascus portion of the property and said the submitted calculations would need to be revised to comply with township ordinances.
He also disputed descriptions in the application referring to wetlands impacts as “minimal.”
“The number of wetlands is not minimal in my opinion,” Cozza said, citing approximately 13.55 acres of wetlands identified on the property.
Despite the opposition, attorneys for the solar project argued many of the concerns being raised involve future land development review rather than the current land-use approval process.
“As your engineer just discussed, there is a significant difference between land use approval and land development,” said Morgan Maddan, counsel for the solar developer. “A lot of these concerns here are well heard, well understood, and really fall more into the land development bucket than they do land use approval bucket.”
The Damascus Township Planning Commission also submitted a letter reaffirming that it does not recommend deforestation exceeding 25% of the property within the township. The review process for the project remains ongoing.
2026 Sinclair, Inc.
