Solar farm redesigned with greater setback from roadway in Yorkville

Following debate about roadway setbacks, an amended design for the Beecher Road Solar LLC solar farm in Yorkville is once again looking sunny to city officials.

The new engineering plans feature a downsized solar array and greater setbacks from Corneils Road. However, the new design puts the project closer to Route 47.

The solar farm would be located on a 70-acre agricultural parcel, owned by Gary and Betty Bennett, north of Corneils Road, west of Beecher Road, and east of Route 47.

The project has been downsized from its original 23.6-acre design, and now will span across 20.3 acres. The site will feature 11,201 solar panels, and produce a little less than 5-megawatts of energy.

The solar farm proposal is part of an expansion of the city-approved Corneils Road Solar project, a 35-acre solar farm development on property that was annexed and rezoned by Yorkville. This 5-megawatt solar farm’s design, by developers Nexamp, LLC, includes solar panels that cannot exceed a height of 20 feet, enclosed within an 8-foot tall fence.

The Bennett property is adjacent to the site of the proposed Project Steel, a 540-acre data center campus.

The increased setback for the Beecher Farm, LLC, project was requested by city aldermen who feared residents would be upset if the project was too close to the roadway. The setback also helps minimize glare from the solar panels, which also are angled to minimize the glare.

With the new amendments, the solar farm has increased the setback from Corneils road to 902.3 feet. The developers originally wanted only a 482 foot setback. The city requirement is a 1,000 foot setback.

The solar farm now will be closer to Route 47, placed at 2,600 feet east of the roadway, compared with the original plans that had the project 4,000 feet from Route 47.

The new plans also include a 10-foot fence along the southern and southeast flanks of the design. The higher fence was requested by a neighbor who feared glare from the solar panels would disrupt their horse riding track.

At the next City Council meeting, the city will consider approving a special use authorization for the solar farm and a variance for the requested setbacks.