One month after a Conditional Use Permit application for a utility-grade solar project was rejected, Scotts Bluff County Board Chair Ken Meyer has the subject before Commissioners again Monday.
Thaer Flieh with Dunlieh Energy spoke with KNEB News recently, saying organization officials were surprised the Board rejected the Planning Commission’s positive recommendation on the Situla Energy application.
Flieh tells KNEB News they want to find solutions to let the project move forward, as the reasoning behind the objections was not clear. “A lot of the conversation that happened during that public meeting wasn’t about the conditional use permit,” said Flieh. “None of the recommendations from the zoning board, or even the information were discussed during that public meeting, so I would say the majority of the conversation and the reasoning during that public meeting was not relevant.”
One specific objection to granting the permit was that the landowner needed to be the one asking for the conditional use permit, not the company behind the project. Flieh says they disagreed with that statement, based on advice they received from their local attorney.
He also said the organization is committed to the project, still believes it should qualify for a CUP, and hopes the Board will change their vote on the matter.
