WC Texas News

Brown County Commissioners' narrow vote earlier this month against a tax abatement for a proposed solar farm near Brookesmith - a project that may not be dead yet - was the right thing to do, a solar opponent recently said.

The vote sent a message, Texas Landowners Opposed to Wind (TLOW) member Jeff Tucker said.

"I think it is good that the county sent a message that such businesses need to have a true investment zone with real jobs in order to apply for such in our county," Tucker told WC Texas News. "If you are going to apply for real investment zones, there should be real job creation. This was an attempt by renewables to fleece a county, and the voters and court stood against such attempts by renewables who have an agenda-driven process that serves the company more than the county."

Brown County Judge Paul D. Lilly | browncountytx.org/

TLOW describes itself as "an organization of concerned landowners fighting to protect land rights and Texas native landscape."

Last month, Tucker and fellow TLOW member Steve Wilson presented a petition signed by residents opposed to the proposed solar farm and a tax abatement requested by would-be developer Intersect Power (IP) Radian, based in San Francisco. The project would have been on the property in southwest Brown County in Brookesmith Independent School District. The school district approved the application on Jan. 29, 2020.

Tucker's comments followed commissioners' 3-2 vote on May 10 against forming a reinvestment zone, which was a required step for Intersect Power (IP) Radian's tax abatement application to continue.

Voters against the proposal were Brown County Judge Paul Lilly, Precinct 1 Commissioner Gary Worley and Precinct 4 Commissioner Larry Traweek. Voting in favor were Precinct 2 Commissioner Joel Kelton and Precinct 3 Commissioner Wayne Shaw.

The no vote that carried made items for the project in future agendas moot.

"It was a tight vote," Tucker said. "I think the two commissioners who voted for it simply don't get the big picture. Those others who voted against it simply followed the will of the voters who clearly stated they were not support such an abatement request."

Prior to the vote, IP Radian Representative D. Dale Cummings told commissioners that the project would generate $9.2 million in county taxes and $16.2 million in taxes to Brookesmith ISD "over the course of 35 years."

Local news outlets reported that the county commissioners' vote would bring IP Radian's project in Brown County "to a swift end" and that "Brown County will not have a solar farm," but Lilly told a television news outlet that may not be so. Construction plans for the solar farm are likely to continue without the county tax abatement IP Radian was seeking, Lilly told KTAB news.

"I believe that they're probably going to go ahead and build at least some sort of solar facility out there," Lilly told KTAB. "And more power to them, I'd like to see that, just don't ask the government to subsidize."

An IP Radian representative said after the meeting that the company will re-evaluate its plans as part of its next steps, KTAB news reported.

Meanwhile, TLOW has its own next steps.

"Several things," Tucker told WC Texas News. "We will now seek to place on the commissioners' court who will not serve self-interests in such matters but rather serve the will of the voters who place them in office and resist big governments push in such matters."