Second major solar farm near Wichita wins planning commission approval
A second major solar farm zoning application near Wichita won approval from the Wichita-Sedgwick County Metropolitan Planning Commission on Thursday, against the objections of neighboring Clearwater.
The planning commission’s 6-4 vote in favor of the change sets up what is expected to be a contentious decision on both projects by the Sedgwick County Commission in August. The commission passed a moratorium earlier this month on additional solar project applications in response to a flood of concern from residents.
The commission voted earlier this month to approve a nearby and slightly larger solar project.
The County Commission will have the final say on whether the two solar projects move forward. Combined, they would convert nearly 3,000 acres southwest of Wichita from farmland to a massive array of solar panels harnessing energy from the sun and pumping it into the Evergy energy grid.
The Branch Line Solar Project, approved Thursday by the planning commission, would be on 1,359.6 acres south of 119th to 151st between 71st and 87th, just north of Clearwater. 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 — received a similar approval earlier this month.
The MAPC 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 planning commission’s decision. The public hearing for the Branch Line project was May 19, and no public comments were allowed at Thursday’s meeting.
That didn’t completely block out dissenting voices. Six days after the hearing, the Clearwater City Council voted to formally oppose the zoning request. The resolution was included in the staff report provided to planning commissioners.
“The term of the permit will be 30 to 35 years,” the resolution says. “The placement of the solar farm in its proposed location will forever alter the growth of Clearwater.”
Clearwater urged the planning commission to consider alternative locations for such projects.
“The City encourages the consideration of alternative locations for such projects that minimize conflicts with urban expansion and preserve land for higher-value and more flexible development uses,” the resolution, signed by the entire Clearwater City Council, says.
The planning commission ultimately did not resolve some of the controversy included in the plans.
For instance, the county’s zoning regulations for utility-scale solar energy projects require a two-mile buffer zone between solar project sites. Portions of the two projects are within two miles of one another.
“I understand the county put a restriction in that solar permits can’t be within two miles of each other,” planning commission member Bryan Frye said. “Yet this is within two miles of one. So how can planning staff make a recommendation for approval, knowing that was the county’s policy?”
Sedgwick County attorney Justin Waggoner explained to the MAPC that neither project has been granted final approval, so each case can be treated as if it is being considered on its own. He said the county commission can choose to approve conditional use permits for smaller portions of the proposed project areas if it so chooses.
“Ultimately, for sure, at the county commission level, they can’t even waive this provision,” Waggoner said. “There’s a specific line in the code on that, so they would have to reconcile that difference.”
Scott Wadle, MAPC planning director, said the staff recommendation was difficult.
“I would just add that it is a difficult spot to be in, as far as staff are concerned,” he said. “And at this point, we did not know if one of these cases was going to get deferred or if it’s going to be sent back or what the timing would be. So anything we would put in there, in terms of a reduction in any of the applications would kind of be a forecast in that.”