The fight against a controversial 6,100-acre solar farm project in Will County is once again headed to court.
This time, 18 property owners near the “Pride of the Prairie” solar project site have filed suit seeking to reverse a May 21 decision by the Will County Board allowing the project, which would span 96 parcels across Green Garden, Wilton and Manhattan townships. The lawsuit claims the county’s ordinance and state law governing the siting of solar facilities are unconstitutional because they deprived the property owners of their rights.
Steven Becker, an attorney representing the homeowners, said he believes it is the first time the constitutionality of the state’s siting statute for solar facilities has been challenged since the statute’s adoption in 2023.
In the lawsuit, the homeowners argue that residents’ due process rights were denied because board members, who voted 12-8 to approve a utility-scale solar farm, were told they could not consider standards they typically consider when reviewing development proposals. During the May 21 vote, many board members lamented that their hands were tied by state law and a 3rd District Appellate Court ruling upholding the state’s solar siting regulations.
More Top Picks Best Reading Glasses For Macular Degeneration
“I do understand and I sympathize with the residents,” board member Sherry Newquist, a Steger Democrat, said at the May meeting before casting a vote in favor of the special use permit. “For me, it really boils down with the fact that the state of Illinois has removed our discretion in this matter.”
The lawsuit names all 22 Will County Board members, Will County and Lincoln Solar, which is owned by Earthrise Energy, as defendants.
In addition to seeking a reversal of the May 21 decision, the suit also seeks an injunction preventing Earthrise Energy from beginning construction on the solar facility until the matter is resolved.
In an emailed statement, an Earthrise spokesperson described the lawsuit as “meritless.”
“We are confident that the project complies with all applicable state and county law, and that our permits were properly issued,” the company said in its statement. “We will respond vigorously through the legal process and are confident we will prevail.”
A spokesperson for the Will County state’s attorney’s office said the county was reviewing the recently filed lawsuit and would respond accordingly.
In April, Becker won a delay of a planned vote on Earthrise’s “Pride of the Prairie” project when a Will County judge ruled the county erred by not allowing Becker to cross-examine witnesses on behalf of his clients during a two-day public hearing before the county’s planning and zoning commission. The commission was forced to hold a second public hearing allowing Becker to cross-examine witnesses from Earthrise and present evidence on behalf of his clients.
Throughout the hearings, residents expressed concern that Earthrise’s application was incomplete, did not account for wetlands on the 96 parcels and that the company did not work with township road officials regarding access.
Despite the additional hearing, Becker’s most recent filing likens the county’s hearing process to an “Illusory Potemkin Village,” a phrase often used to describe a false construct or facade.
“Plaintiffs were denied a meaningful public hearing because all of the testimony and evidence presented at the evidentiary hearing, including Plaintiffs’ cross-examination of the applicant’s witnesses, was never considered by the Will County Board in making its decision,” Becker wrote in the 68-page lawsuit.
County officials in May said Earthrise’s application was complete and that it met county and state standards. Finer details, such as the exact location of solar arrays, will be addressed by the county’s staff during the building permitting phase, officials said.
Becker’s case is scheduled for a case management hearing on Nov. 30.