Grundy County Board approves solar farm in Coal City, the first to follow new guidelines

The Grundy County Board approved a special use permit for a solar farm at on Dresden Road north of Coal City on Tuesday, with that farm being the first that needed to follow the new guidelines put in place last August.

Director of Development Alec MacDonald said the special u se permit was approved by both the Zoning Board of Appeals and the Grundy County Land Use Committee, with all determining factors been discussed and presented publically. The site is a 6.58 megawatt direct current and five megawatt alternating current project, and it covers 33.26 acres of a 270.47 acre parcel. The project faced no opposition from the public.

"I just want to make a special note that this is first use case to follow the special use wind and solar energy, conversion system, procedure and documentation checklist," MacDonald said. "That checklist has created a transparent, seamless process that helps guide both developers and the county throughout development."

Board Chairman Chris Balkema said the project had to go through 29 items to move forward. This project went through all of them, and every approval from the boards up to the county board was unanimous.

The approval from the county board on Tuesday, though, was not: Board member Caleb Counterman abstained from voting.