Wichita-area officials will make key decision on solar farm this week
The Metropolitan Area Planning Commission will vote Thursday on a solar farm project near Clearwater in southwest Sedgwick County.
But, after a planning commission hearing in May, the public won’t be able to comment on the proposal again until a county commission meeting in August.
“The Board of County Commissioners meeting, tentatively scheduled for Aug. 5, 2026, will be a public hearing where members of the public can speak for or against the request,” Senior Planner Brad Eatherly said in an email.
That hearing is expected to include both major solar applications in Sedgwick County: Mission Clean Energy’s Galena Solar Project — a 260-megawatt solar energy project on approximately 1,490 acres west from Ridge to 119th and south of 47th to 71st — and Ted Renewables’ Branch Line Solar Project — a 130-megawatt solar energy project on 1,359.6 acres west of Maize Road to 151st and south of 71st to 87th.
Combined, the two projects would convert nearly 3,000 acres of farmland into renewable energy developments that plan to tie into the Evergy transmission grid at the Murray Gill substation at 55th South and Hoover. The renewable energy projects would help power an expected surge in energy demand fueled largely by an impending hyperscale data-center boom to support the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence, along with other industrial and commercial users.
The planning commission won’t accept public comment at the Thursday meeting because it exercised an unusual scheduling tactic that split the public hearing on the proposal — which usually comes right before a vote on an agenda item — from the commission’s decision.
The planning commission held public hearings for the projects during two special meetings — one on April 29 for the Galena Solar Project and one on May 19 for the Branch Line Solar Project. It voted to grant preliminary approval to the Galena project on June 11.
Although members of the public will not be allowed to comment on the solar project Thursday, people may attend the meeting. It starts at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, June 25 on the third floor of the Ronald Reagan Building 271 W. 3rd in Wichita. Click here to view the agenda.
Meanwhile, the Sedgwick County Commission approved a six-month moratorium on new solar energy project applications last week, signaling they may have some concerns about the existing zoning regulations for utility-scale solar projects passed in 2024. The two existing applications will not be affected by the moratorium.
Both projects qualify for a 10-year property tax abatement offered through the state. But the MAPC estimates the Branch Line project could generate significant property tax revenue after that for another 28 years, including nearly $270,000 annually for Sedgwick County and more than $430,000 a year for Clearwater Public Schools.
MAPC was unable to calculate a similar estimate for the Galena project, although developers said it could generate $2.35 million a year. MAPC staff said it could not verify that claim.