In Kentucky’s dense cities and smallest towns, nonprofits are bridging the gap between those who grow food, those who have excess and those who need it.
A public hearing does not guarantee that the School Board will increase the occupational licenses tax. But some School Board members want to leave the option on the table.
Council will have their first full vote on solar panel regulations
The GGP Committee rejected regulations allowing for rural solar panel farms. But now all Councilmembers will get to weigh in on the future of solar panels in rural Fayette County.
In Tuesday’s Work Session, the entire Council will vote on and discuss proposed regulations for solar panels in Fayette County — the solar panel ZOTA (Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment).
In July, the General Government and Planning (GGP) Committee voted to advance a draft of a Solar Panel ZOTA that allows rooftop and ground-mounted solar in several residential and business zones inside the Urban Service Area (USA), but strictly prohibits ground-mounted solar panels in rural Fayette County outside the USA.
Tuesday’s Work Session is the first time that Council will get to vote on the ZOTA as an entire body. Councilmembers who do not serve on the GGP Committee may attempt to revise the draft ZOTA in any number of ways.
Councilmember Sheehan announced in July that she and Sevigny would be creating a Task Force that would work to draft regulations for solar panels in rural Fayette County — if the Task Force were to decide rural solar panels should exist at all. No news has been shared yet about the membership or development of the Task Force, and their Herald-Leader op-ed does not say anything about the Task Force.
Whether or not ground-mounted solar panels should be allowed on Lexington’s rural farmland has been a hot topic of debate over the last year.
East Kentucky Power is a public utility that is regulated by the state and is not bound by Lexington’s zoning laws. Any solar panel regulations adopted by Council would only apply to private residents and developers.
Local advocacy groups and privateresidents have written several op-eds in the Herald-Leader debating what role rural solar panel farms should play in Fayette County.
Watch the meeting: Council will have their first vote as a full body on the solar panel ZOTA on Tuesday, August 19th at 3pm in Council Chambers during Work Session. You can attend in-person or watch live on LexTV.
UPDATE: The original version of this story used the terms "Task Force" and "Work Group" interchangeably. The article was updated on August 19th to solely use the term Task Force, the correct terminology for the body Councilmembers Sheehan and Sevigny plan to create to work on solar panel regulations.
In Kentucky’s dense cities and smallest towns, nonprofits are bridging the gap between those who grow food, those who have excess and those who need it.
