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by Andrea Ramey
STOCKTON, Ala. (NBC 15) —
Silicon Ranch says it has received conditional approval to move forward with its proposed 4,500-acre solar project in Baldwin County, just days before Stockton area voters decide whether to adopt zoning. Opponents of the $350 million project pushed for Tuesday's vote, hoping zoning could stop the solar farm. Silicon Ranch CEO Reagan Farr says regardless of the outcome of Tuesday's referendum, construction is expected to begin this fall.
“We'll be preserving over 2,500 acres, including 100% percent of the wetlands on the site, and are really focusing on the best 2,000 acres for hosting the solar,” said Farr.
The Baldwin County Commission says the company has received conditional approval for its land disturbance permit, pending permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Alabama Department of Environmental Management.
“We're very confident in our position that the project is now fully permitted from a county perspective, and we will be getting subsequent approvals from the Army Corps as we put together the application with them,” said Farr.
The county also says because Silicon Ranch's application was formally accepted before Tuesday's referendum, it would not be subject to any zoning regulations adopted as a result of the vote. The county considers the project grandfathered in. Opponents of the project disagree.
“Right now, after hearing what our legal counsel has had to say on this, it doesn't seem like this is a completed permit,” said Meagan Fowler, who leads the grassroots group Friends of the Tensaw.
Fowler says the company's letter announcing permit approval could impact turnout on Tuesday.
“There's going to be now more confusion over this and what it could and could not do. They've gotten multiple mailers. They're still getting them, got them yesterday. They got them today, regarding just really incorrect information on what zoning would do for their rights,” said Fowler.
Farr says Silicon Ranch has no connection to mailers being sent by the political action committees RAE, Clover and Conservative Candidates for Liberty. He says the company mailed its letter after receiving conditional county approval in order to keep residents informed.
“I've tried to stay above the fray of all of the things going on around social media, and just, you know, have actually spent a lot of time trying to just get people to have one source of truthful, factual information, and I've struggled a bit, but I keep trying to get people look at the project website,” said Farr.
The proposed solar project spans across Planning District 3 in Stockton and neighboring Planning District 2 in Rabun. Residents in Planning District 2 have not gathered enough signatures to hold a zoning referendum.
Despite the county's position that the project is grandfathered, Fowler says her group will still fight the project.
“We are considering legal action. We really don't want to. We love our county, and we really want our county to support us. We don't want to have to go to legal action with the county or with Silicon Ranch, if we don't have to,” said Fowler.
Friends of the Tensaw is hosting a family day fundraiser Saturday at the Stockton Civic Club from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will feature live music, pie contest and a silent auction to help raise money for legal expenses and environmental experts.
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