SYRACUSE – Economic Developer Dan Mauk cast the lone voice in opposition Thursday to  the Otoe County Planning Commission’s new solar regulations that are being called prohibitively restrictive and coming about a year after the county constructively banned commercial wind generation.

Mauk: “When you’re setting these regulations, you are effectively saying we’re not going to be able to do this.”

Mauk: “We need to be mindful of smart planning for the future. Energy is one of those things that we are going to need. We need it now. Everybody has a phone, everything we do is electronic and that’s increasing the demand to the point now we’re seeing delays in projects that we could land because they don’t have the infrastructure and the power right now available.

 

Mauk: “The future really depends on available, inexpensive electricity and the future will not include another coal plant anywhere in the United States.”

 

Mauk said of 27 projects the Nebraska City Area EDC tried to recruit in 2023, the smallest power demand was 15 megawatts, which he said is about the maximum that Nebraska City can provide. He said the average demand is 15 megawatts and the largest demand was over a gigawatt.

Mauk: “This year we’re seeing similar requests. Two have gone as far as having options on land, one is 15 megawatts. It’s in Nebraska City and it’s going to take all they got. The second one is near Nebraska City and they need 50 megawatts. Both of those projects want to have some renewable energy.”

The commission recommends changing the county’s current 500-foot setback from non-participating residences to 1,000 feet. Dave Schmitz said there is talk about a solar project that has leases near Highway 50 north of Syracuse, but said the 1,000 foot setback would not work with some of those leases.

Cale Giese of the Omaha Public Power District said zoning decisions take away rights from landowners who choose to participate in solar projects.

He said there are only a handful of landowners, because of the locations of the infrastructure, that make the projects financially feasible.

Giese: “Across the state 1,000 feet is very restrictive.”

 

Commissioner Chairman Dan Hodges said the 1,000-foot setback is a compromise between the rights of landowners who want to participate in commercial solar and the people who do not want it near them.

There were 60 people at the public hearing, but there were mostly questions about the regulations. Ann Boellstorff spoke in favor of planning commission’s regulations allowing commercial solar only with a conditional use permit in agricultural, transitional agriculture and flex zones.