The Jefferson County Board of Supervisors have agreed to pass the resolution to enter a Joint Development Agreement with Crawfish River Solar, LLC  and the Town of Jefferson to construct a 75-megawatt solar photovoltaic generating facility. The 500-acre facility located south of highway 18 will be used as a source for eco-friendly and locally generated electric power for Alliant Energy, a Wisconsin-based utility provider. The facility will also supply environmental and economic assistance in the local community.

The request to enter the Joint Development Agreement was presented at the meeting to discuss and approve some changes in wording for more flexibility from the document pertaining to agriculture, assignment of interest and insurance.

“I know all of you have read this very carefully and compared it to the first version that you saw in December but it has changed a little bit,” said Jefferson County Board Supervisor Amy Rinard.

The project will consist of rows of solar panels with prairie grass and seed mixes below to help build nutrients for soil and reduce fertilizer and pesticide usage. The rows will be set up along the north-south axis and the panels will rotate from east to west throughout the day to catch the sunlight. 

The land that will be used within this project is offered by landowners who are interested in cooperating in the project. Leased land payments for local farmers who contribute to the project will allow for income diversification while it also preserves and protects agricultural land to flourish and be used in the future.

The Crawfish River Solar is projected to generate clean energy for Wisconsin for 30 or more years. After the end of the project, the panels will be removed from the site and the land will be restored for agricultural use.

Jefferson County will not obtain property tax revenue but instead will receive payments of shared utility tax revenue.

“Jefferson County and the Town of Jefferson County will no longer receive property tax revenue on the land used for operation of the solar photovoltaic electrical generating facility but will receive payments in lieu of taxes from the state of Wisconsin in the form of shared utility tax revenue which will exceed the amount of loss tax revenue,” read Rinard from the meeting agenda. 

This project is in similarity to the Badger State Solar project proposed in May of 2019. The project, also located in Jefferson County, is proposing a 149 megawatt photovoltaic solar electric generating facility with over 1,000 acres of agricultural land. The Badger State Solar will begin construction in July of 2021 and projected to be completed by November of 2022.

Also at the Board of Supervisors meeting, the resolution to support the continued review of the Courthouse facility renovation project and modifying the contract with Potter Lawson for consultation purposes was passed with a 27-1 vote.

A determination to review Courthouse operations included mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems. Most of the systems in the Courthouse have been increasing in failure rates and do not meet current building codes for basic life and safety measures or the Americans with Disabilities Act requirements.

The projected cost of the renovation was estimated at $33 million with $17 million efforted to replace the mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems within the Courthouse. 

“I have been in all of these meetings and I am completely in favor of the renovations but I’m not in favor of the final cost,” said County Board Supervisor James Braughler. “I am certain that we need to trim that. If the cost remains at the condition it is right now, I will be voting against it in the long term. There’s just too much goin on right now.”

Also discussed on Tuesday:

  • The Board of Supervisors denied the claim made by John Ebbott that the city is responsible for the damages to his mailbox as a result of snowplows.
  • The Board of Supervisors congratulated the Lake Mills High School Girls Basketball Team on their Division Three State Basketball Championship.
  • The County Board announced that the month of April 2021 will be Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Month.