Pulaski County is gearing up for a legal battle over a proposed solar farm. A group of 10 individuals has filed a petition for judicial review related to the Mammoth Solar project.
Among other things, they’re asking the court to reverse the BZA’s decision to allow the project to proceed. They argue that the developer’s application failed to meet the county’s requirements for a special exception, since it left out several items. They also say that three of the five board members’ votes shouldn’t count, two because of an alleged conflict of interest and one because he doesn’t live in the county.
The document also claims that Pulaski County’s solar regulations themselves are invalid because two of the three county commissioners who voted on them in December at some point agreed to lease property to the developer.
When the county commissioners met Monday, they voted to hire Barnes & Thornburg as their legal advisor. But how exactly the county will pay the legal fees still has to be determined. The commissioners and Plan Administrator Doug Hoover are expected to discuss that with the county council next week.
Hoover expects the legal bills for his department will be at least $30,000. “We can move a little bit of money around, but, man, it’s only a little over $2,500,” he said. “My budget is so close, $2,500 don’t even cut it. But, you know, we’ll do whatever we’ve got to.”
The commissioners also agreed to have accounting firm Baker Tilly conduct a more in-depth fiscal impact analysis on the solar project than what had originally been planned. Community Development Commission Executive Director Nathan Origer explained that Baker Tilly would not only look at the tax impact but also other things like taking ground out of production. Origer said the study won’t actually take place until the legal issues are resolved.
The additional work would raise the cost of the analysis from $15,000 to $18,000, but that would be covered by the solar farm developer as part of an economic development agreement.
