While dignitaries from around the world converged on Starke County last week to kick off construction on one of the country’s largest solar farms, the reaction from local landowners has been mixed. Speaking to reporters after Thursday’s groundbreaking, Governor Eric Holcomb said he welcomes the input, when it comes to projects on an unprecedented scale.
“Quite frankly, you learn from different perspectives and different concerns,” Holcomb said, “and ending up on a day like today, there was a lot that went into it, a lot of discussions, a lot of questions that need to be answered. Fortunately, they were.”
The project has been the topic of hours of public hearings in Starke and Pulaski counties, stretching back more than a year. In Pulaski County, zoning approval was overturned in court, after a judge sided with opponents’ claims that the developer’s application was incomplete. Meanwhile, the Starke County Commissioners were scheduled to revisit a related rezoning request today. Other solar projects in the pipeline have raised similar concerns about impacts on property values and the environment.
Governor Holcomb said projects like Mammoth Solar require everyone to be on the same page. “So there’s a lot of smiles here today, but if more work needs to be done, so be it,” the governor said. “And the locals absolutely should be front and center, and that’s what forges a better partnership going forward.”
Holcomb said he’d be willing to live next to a solar farm himself, and local communities stand to benefit from Mammoth Solar’s jobs and tax revenues. “For a community like Knox or Winamac down the road, this gives a lot of people more than hope. It gives a lot more opportunity in the area,” Holcomb said.
Beyond that, the governor called the project a step in the right direction, when it comes to diversifying the state’s energy portfolio. He said that filling the private sector’s demand for sustainable energy is important for communities to grow, and strong communities, in turn, build strong families.
