MUSKEGON/MONTAGUE — Geronimo Power, the parent company of Lakeside Solar, hosted an open house Tuesday at Muskegon Community College as part of its ongoing appeal to the Michigan Public Services Commission to grant it the ability to construct a solar energy facility in White River Township.
Geronimo representative Kendra Harrington said Muskegon County was determined to be part of the "affected local area" for the facility earlier this year. The company's hearing with the MPSC was delayed from its original September date pending updates to its application, which the MPSC determined was incomplete. Harrington said Tuesday that the company plans to submit an updated application within the next couple of weeks, at which point another hearing will be scheduled.
The open house at MCC was notably less attended than previous ones hosted at Montague High School in 2022 and NBC Middle School in 2025, with some 15-20 people collecting information. One of them was Montague resident Bill Tarr, whose primary residence is in the City of Montague but who also owns property in White River Township, in the area where the facility would be constructed.
Tarr said the two-acre piece of property he owns in the township is not developed at the moment and that he and members of his family primarily use it for "peace and quiet." He asked a Geronimo representative about the effects of fencing and sight lines on surrounding property owners during the meeting.
Tarr expressed concerns about aesthetics and the long-term impact of the facility, similar to concerns levied by others since the project first became public in 2022. He said his belief is that the company is working to get approval for the project prior to the November elections, as depending on the outcome it's possible the composition of the MPSC, which is appointed by the governor, may change in a way the company would not prefer.
During Wednesday's township board meeting, which was delayed by a day due to the Lakeside Solar event, the board approved an ordinance governing agritourism, farm markets and event barns in the township. The planning commission has worked on the ordinance since earlier this year, having previously installed a brief moratorium on the topic until one could be approved.
The vote for the ordinance was 4-1, with Laura Anderson dissenting. Anderson said her dissent was largely based on the 40-acre minimum the ordinance installs on potential agritourism or event sites, saying properties slightly smaller than that would likely be able to bring agritourism to the township. A public commenter, Denise Eilers, also expressed reservations about that provision.
Trustee Deb Harris said she viewed the 40-acre minimum as a positive and said that amount of space was necessary to accommodate crowds such as come to events hosted by large barns. Clerk Julie Goericke was less committal on the matter but said properties slightly under the 40-acre minimum could apply to the Zoning Board of Appeals for an exception.
Deputy Water Resources Drain Commissioner Dallas Goldberg presented to the board regarding two maintenance projects that took place at Pierson Drain this year. One was unscheduled and forced onto the drain commission due to this spring's heavy rain event that took place. The commission installed a regional detention to redirect water from the northeast region of Pierson Drain in hopes of limiting the impact of future events.
A regularly scheduled project cleared debris south of the Hancock Street bridge, near Old Channel Trail Golf Course. Pierson is inspected annually, Goldberg said, to ensure the water there is flowing properly. The total cost of the two projects was over $30,000.
Goldberg was asked about the use of controlled burns to clear brush and keep the growth of debris from becoming an issue in grass waterways. He described the burns as the most cost-effective solutions to the issue, but in the past couple of years the Department of Natural Resources has not granted burn permits.
The board discussed a potential road paving project on Lau Road. No action was taken as Supervisor Ron Bailey has not yet received a quote on the cost. Bailey said he learned that adding a few feet to the road to create a bike lane and accommodate pedestrian traffic would potentially triple the cost due to the need to move trees and do ditch work to allow for the addition. The board will revisit the topic when it has a more solid idea of the costs involved.
