City Council Meeting Date: August 20, 2019
To: Mayor and City Council
City Administrator
From: Scott Tempel, City Planner
Title
Consideration of Decommissioning Agreement - Chub Garden LLC.
Body
Action Requested:
The Northfield City Council approves the attached agreement establishing decommissioning standards for a Community Solar Garden and authorizes the Mayor and City Clerk to sign the agreement.
Summary Report:
The Community Development Department received a proposal from Nokomis Energy for a community solar garden (CSG) conditional use permit (CUP) to permit a Photovoltaic Ground lMWac Solar Energy System in the Agricultural Zoning District (A-S). The project is located at 320th Street and Garrett Avenue in Dakota County. Chub Garden LLC will consist of approximately 3700 to 4000 panels on roughly 5 acres of land. The CSG will have a contract life of 25 years and a useful life of 35 years. Once operating, this project will deliver ~1,800,000 kWh of clean, local energy annually to the surrounding community for 25+ years with only the sun as feedstock. As part of Xcel Energy's Solar*Rewards Community Program, Xcel Energy customers may subscribe to a solar garden and receive a credit on their monthly Xcel Energy bill based upon the production of their garden subscription.
Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of the CUP at its January 19, 2018 meeting. The City Council approved the CUP on February 5, 2019. Several different agreements have been drafted for the project. One of the conditions of approval of the CUP as required by City of Northfield City Code ("Code"), section 2.9.5 (P) provides as follows:
"Abandonment. If a commercial solar farm or community solar garden remains nonfunctional or inoperative for a continuous period longer than one year, and is thereafter not brought into operation within the time specified by the city, the system shall be presumed to be abandoned and shall constitute a public nuisance. The owner o...
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