Legal and state regulatory options have now been launched by Ranger Power of Chicago to avoid the Sept. 1 denial of a special use permit by the Louisa County Board of Adjustment

Legal and state regulatory options have now been launched by Ranger Power of Chicago to avoid the Sept. 1 denial of a special use permit by the Louisa County Board of Adjustment. The HawkEye reports that Zoning Administrator Bruce Hudson told the Louisa County Board of Supervisors this week the company had filed a lawsuit over the denial of the permit for the proposed 450 megawatt solar, energy storage and agrivoltaics Southpaw Solar Energy project in northern Louisa County. In addition to the lawsuit, the company has also submitted an application to the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) for a state permit. If granted, the permit would override the local decision and allow the facility to be constructed on approximately 5,700 acres. The local board denied the special use permit because of the impact of the proposed facility on some of the county’s best farmland.