MONTAGUE — White River Township residents whose property is adjacent to the proposed Lakeside Solar energy facility have recently received letters from Geronimo Power, Lakeside's parent company, informing them that it will pursue site approval from the Michigan Public Services Commission. Township supervisor Ron Bailey confirmed several local landowners have received the letter during Tuesday's regular board meeting.
The company is permitted to pursue this approval under Public Act 233, which allows the MPSC to make final siting decisions for renewable energy projects if local municipalities are found to have stricter regulations for such projects than the state does. According to the letter, the company expects that action will be taken on its application within the year.
Lakeside Solar's move was expected after the White River planning commission gave approval to the company's proposed solar energy project in January, but attached "52 conditions," according to the letter, including the relocation of the project to the township's renewable energy overlay (REO), sited on Chemours property.
The company has previously released an alternative site analysis explaining why it does not believe the overlay is suitable for its project, in large part because the site is not large enough to produce the 150 megawatts it says it's aiming to produce. Mac McClelland, a northern Michigan-based consultant specializing in brownfield redevelopment, reported at a December meeting of the planning commission that the REO included enough land for a facility to produce as many as 95 megawatts of power.
In delivering its approval in January, the commission maintained that Lakeside Solar's application was incomplete in several key areas, and many of its conditions revolved around rectifying those perceived shortcomings. Portions dealing with the facility's battery storage and the deforestation required to build it, as well as stormwater and flood plans, are among the areas the commission said lacked complete information.
The board gave unanimous approval to the final version of the master plan, which was recently completed by the planning commission. The plan must be reviewed every five years under 2008 Michigan Public Act 33.
The board also approved a revision of its short-term rental application forms, allowing for a brief inspection of participating properties. Zoning administrator Bill Schmiege said the inspections will not be exhaustive and are intended to determine if there are health and safety risks on each property. Another revision was to remove a provision requiring grass above 10 inches to be cut, as some participating STRs may be adjacent to dune grass - which often grows taller than that - and the board felt the provision could be unclear.
During the meeting, Chemours Environmental Impact Committee members Marisa McGlue and Claire Schlaff shared updates from the organization. McGlue shared that "technical glitches" prevented CEIC from applying for a Michigan Coastal Management grant for this year that would target cleanup at Sadony Bayou, and it will try again next year. She added that several statewide and regional agencies are in support of CEIC's grant application, so optimism is high it will be able to obtain it.
Schlaff discussed the forests surrounding the township's REO, believing it's "not a done deal" that they would be clear-cut, which was a likely fate if Lakeside Solar was to use the area for its solar energy facility. She shared hope that county and state organizations could aid in conserving the forests if they are not removed for those facilities.
Laura Anderson, the board's representative on the White Lake Ambulance Authority, reported that the WLAA remains in conversation with Fruitland Township about potentially joining on a contract basis in the future. Anderson said, and board members agreed, that the WLAA would need to be protected if such an arrangement occurred, noting an acrimonious split between the authority and Fruitland in 2015.
Planning commission chair Lauren Wackernagel said the commission is working on ordinances to address data centers and event venues, utilizing a six-month moratorium on approving either that it enacted last October. She added that there will be a data center event with speaker Sarah Mills from the University of Michigan's Graham Sustainability Institute on March 12 at NBC Middle School.
Mary Kriesel, township representative to the White Lake Fireworks Committee, shared that a 100/100 raffle is planned to raise money for this year's fireworks. A hundred tickets will be sold at $100 each, and the committee will host three weekly drawings to award prizes that will total $5,000. Ticket purchasers may win at more than one of those drawings.
Deb Harris reported that the Muskegon County solid waste facility's free dump day for White River Township residents will take place May 2. The township will have certificates for up to $25 worth of disposed material available closer to the event.
