County Zoning Board to discuss zoning for solar farms near St. Joseph

Three proposed solar farms near St. Joseph will be before the Champaign County Zoning Board of Appeals within the next few weeks.

The farm located north of the St. Joseph Sportsmans Club will be presented to the on Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. at the Brookens Center located at 1776 E Washington St, Urbana, IL 61802.

This farm is asking for three waivers.

The other two solar farms are also located north of St. Joseph. The will be before the Champaign County Zoning Board of Appeals on Oct. 11 at 6:30 p.m. at the Brookens Center.

The second solar farm will be located west of the north of Interstate 74 and west of County Road 2350 E.

They are asking for five waivers.

The third will be located west of Heather Hills and north of Schuren’s Nursery. They are asking for six waivers.

“The village will be signing a resolution against all three proposed solar farms,” said Mayor Tami Fruhling-Voges.  “One of our biggest objections is that all three solar farms are a half mile or less from the village limit.”

The village is normally allowed to determine the future growth of the village within one and a half miles of village limits.

“The county has taken that away from us with allowing solar farms within a half a mile of all county villages,” Fruhling-Voges said.  “There is, of course, many other concerns to be considered including the noise, decommissioning, damage to drainage tiles and the effect to property values to surrounding properties.”

Fruhling-Voges said she finds it interesting that the county has always worked to protect the county’s best, prime farmland and have always let the villages determine how that property was used within the one-and-a-half mile radius while also encouraged compact growth versus sprawling urban growth.

“But now those things don’t seem to be a factor,” she said.

Fruhling-Voges said she wants the community to know what is being proposed and to give residents the chance to let the county board know how they feel about the proposed farms.

“They can either attend the county zoning appeals meetings on September 26^th and October 11^th  or contact the Champaign County Zoning at 384-3708 and zoningdept@co.champaign.il.us,” she said. “The community’s comments, concerns or objections will be forwarded and attached to each of the proposals.”