Construction plans for a prospective solar farm have been postponed again.
The county would receive additional funding as a result of the extension.
Jay County Council agreed to move forward with amendments to its tax abatement and economic development agreement with Leeward Renewable Energy for its prospective Rose Gold Solar Farm during a nearly two-hour meeting Wednesday.
Leeward Renewable Energy had been required per its approved timeline with the county to start construction by June 30, 2027, with work to be completed by the end of 2028. The proposed changes would require construction to start by June 30, 2029, with completion by Dec. 31, 2030.
As a result of the two-year extension, the county would receive $3.975 million in economic development payments over a four-year period following the start of construction. That amount is an increase of more than $2 million from the previous agreement.
Likewise, the company would shift to a tax abatement that reduces property taxes by 75% for 10 years. Previously, the company had a 10-year graduated abatement, with taxes abated by 10% less each year.
Leeward Renewable Energy’s plans for Rose Gold Solar involve a $160 million, 150-megawatt solar facility on about 1,430 acres north of Dunkirk.
Sam Brooks, senior development associate with Leeward Renewable Energy, explained development began on Rose Gold Solar in late 2019. County officials approved agreements with the company in 2021.
Plans originally called for construction to begin in late 2022.
Delays with securing an agreement with regional transmission organization PJM Interconnection pushed Leeward Renewable Energy to adjust its timeline. (The organization — it coordinates wholesale electricity movement across 13 states and the District of Columbia — had been revamping its analysis process for new services joining the power grid.)
Despite submitting its application in early 2020, Leeward Renewable Energy didn’t receive its agreement with the organization until late last year. That agreement stipulates the facility can’t begin generating electricity until 2030.
Brooks noted the company is coordinating with PJM Interconnection on ways to accelerate the timeline, but realistically Leeward Renewable Energy is now planning for the solar farm to go online in 2030.
Andy Buroker, an attorney representing Leeward Renewable Energy, presented two options for council members to consider as amendments.
Buroker shared the aforementioned increased economic development payments and adjusted tax abatement as one option. If there are additional millions invested into the project beyond Leeward Renewable Energy’s $160 million commitment, he added, the economic development payment would increase.
He also shared another option, which would involve increasing the economic development payment from $1.95 million to $2.475 million. (That raises the payment to about $16,500 per megawatt, or a half-million-dollar increase overall.) It would also keep the original 10-year abatement, which saves the company about $7 million in property taxes.
Buroker noted discussions with Jay County Council president Matt Minnich, Jay County Commissioners president Duane Monroe, county attorney Wes Schemenaur and financial advisor Baker Tilly.
Minnich suggested council members move forward with the option that results in larger economic development payments.
“I just think there’s a lot of opportunity with some of the projects that we have in the works,” he said. “If they’ll have a larger EDA, maybe they’ll facilitate some of those projects, and hopefully they can do something like we did before, where we gave some money back to the smaller communities to help out with their projects.”
The amendments also call for starting economic development payments at the beginning of construction instead of when the facility starts generating electricity.
Buroker reassured council members that Leeward Renewable Energy still plans to construct a solar farm in Jay County.
“Rose Gold Solar is committed to this project, wants to do it, if we could start tomorrow, we would,” he said.
Council members agreed to the terms of the option recommended by Minnich. County attorney Wes Schemenaur noted he would draft the legislation for their next meeting. Commissioners will need to approve the updated economic development agreement as well.
Also Wednesday, council approved a recommendation from Jay County Tax Abatement Advisory Committee to grant a one-year tax abatement to Jay County REMC. As a result, the company will contribute a $40,000 economic development payment.
Council originally looked at a 10-year abatement in August with the electric cooperative for its proposed warehouse and office project. It agreed to a real property tax abatement at that point in time. Last month, council referred the abatement along with a request for a personal property tax abatement to Jay County Tax Abatement Advisory Committee.
Committee members last month expressed concerns about transparency, saying a few items in the cooperative’s application were misrepresented. They ultimately recommended a shorter abatement with an economic development payment included.
Jay County REMC board member Ken Denton read a prepared statement Wednesday from CEO Neil Draper asking for the council’s support for the abatement as originally approved. Addressing one of the concerns raised at past meetings, Denton read that construction site work prior to the project’s start date in September had been preliminary preparations.
Council members again questioned some of the details in the application, with council member Matt Minnich also saying it seemed like the abatement request came in at the last minute.
Council members Bryan Alexander, Faron Parr, Cindy Bracy, Michael Brewster, Randy May and Minnich agreed to the committee’s recommendation. Council member Harold Towell dissented.
Council also received a primer on changes coming to income and property taxes starting in 2029.
Sam Vanderveen, senior project manager with Policy Analytics and a former employee at the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance, shared an analysis of the fiscal impact of changes made by Senate Enrolled Act 1 and subsequent legislation.
Vanderveen pointed to decisions the Municipal Unit Strategic Taskforce will need to make before the end of the year. He shared graphs demonstrating property taxes for different entities — they included tax scenarios for individuals and businesses as well as school corporations and government agencies — over the next decade.
The overall effect, Vanderveen noted, contributes to significant increases in residential tax bills, specifically for properties with lower assessed values. Vanderveen suggested the county address how to make those effects less disproportionate.
To hear Vanderveen’s full presentation, check out council’s recording of the meeting at bit.ly/jaycouncilOct142026.
Also, council approved the county’s 2027 budget.
Next year’s budget came in at $27.04 million, roughly $1.1 million (4.4%) more than the current year. It includes just under $12.35 million in the general fund, an approximately $600,000 increase from this year’s general fund.
The 2027 budget includes at least 2.5% raises across the board for county employees along with the county’s $515,000 payment toward emergency responder radios.
In other business, council:
•Made the following additional appropriations: $25,000 for the reimbursed health bioterrorism grant, which helps fund Jay County Health Department; $17,650 for Jay County Courthouse utilities; $5,910 for Jay Circuit Court; and $1,500 for professional services from Ritter Strategic Services.
•Approved a salary ordinance amendment to give Jay County public defender Brandon Murphy a $1,250 one-time bonus — it’s a stipend given by the state — and made $1,485.63 in additional appropriations to account for the increase.
•Formally changed the November meeting date to 6 p.m. Nov. 18, a week later than the normally scheduled meeting. The change was made to avoid conflicts with Veterans Day.
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