BARRON COUNTY, Wis. (WEAU) – A proposed solar farm in the town of Dallas is drawing pushback from Barron County residents who say they have unresolved questions about its impact.
MN8 Energy, a U.S.-based clean energy company, is behind the Sandhill Solar Project — a $180 million development that would be built on approximately 600 acres of privately owned land.
Julie Amundson, who has lived on her property in southern Barron County for 23 years, said she does not understand why the area was selected.
“We just don’t understand why they’re choosing this area,” Amundson said. “It’s productive farmland, and we don’t get it. We don’t understand why the public, the people in the community, were not aware of it.”
During a town hall, Jillian Lentz said she grew up on a farm in Barron County raising beef cattle, and that her parents rent some of the land where the project is proposed. She said the development would leave her family surrounded by solar panels.
“It’s just kind of sickening to think about how there is no regard for the land and future generations,” Lentz said.
Lentz added that if the project moves forward, she may have to leave the area.
“If it goes through, there will be no opportunities for me around here, so I will have to start looking elsewhere because there will be nothing for me here,” she said.
Charlie Hooley, MN8 Energy’s project development manager for the western region, said the project is intended to address a growing energy gap in Wisconsin.
“Wisconsin uses more power each year than it produces,” Hooley said. “So, what that means is that we’re reliant on energy imports from nearby states to help meet our power demand. We’re trying to create some of that power production more locally.”
Hooley said the project would generate enough clean energy to power approximately 17,000 homes and provide cost-effective solar and battery storage.
Hooley said the town of Dallas and Barron County would receive up to $550,000 in combined annual utility aid payments.
“That’s going into the general fund to go to things like roads, hospitals or whatever they decide to spend it on,” Hooley said. “We’re also going to be donating twenty thousand dollars per year to the Barron area school district.”
Hooley said taxpayers and landowners will be protected against decommissioning costs. The project’s footprint — roughly 600 acres would be built on privately owned land. MN8 Energy has 900 acres set aside but said the final plan will use only 600.
Amundson said concerns about soil, water, and the surrounding environment remain unanswered. Hooley said the company plans to open a local office in Dallas, Wisconsin, in the coming weeks to give residents an opportunity to ask questions directly.
“We’re a clean energy company with an environmental mission,” Hooley said. “And it is in our best interest to protect the land that we are working with and the communities that we’re working within.”
Hooley said the project has a 35-year life cycle. Once complete, the equipment will be recycled or reused and the land restored to its original condition.
MN8 Energy hopes to begin operations in 2029. The company must first submit a permit to the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (PSC) by the end of this year, as required by state law. The PSC will then weigh economic, environmental, and safety factors before deciding whether the project is in the public interest.
For more information about the project, you can visit the Sandhill Solar Project’s website.
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