REGUGLAR, MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTYBOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  JUNE3,2024  PAGE438  The) Jasper County Commissioners: met this date at 830AMCS.Tat9105. Sparling, Rensselaer, Indiana with the following members present: Rein Bontreger, Jeffrey DeYoung, James Walstra Also present were. Auditor, Donya Jordan, Deputy. Auditor, Treasure Gilbert and] Eric Beaver, the Attorney that represents the Commissioners. Those present stood and recited the Pledge of Allegiancel led byl Mr. Bontreger. There was al briefn moment ofs silence following thel Pledge. MINUTES: Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve the minutes from May 6,2024, Mr. Walstra Mr. Walstra motioned to approve the minutes from May 20,2024, Mr. DeYoung seconded and CLAIMS: Mr. Walstra motioned to approvet the claims, as presented, Mr. DeYoung seconded and PAYROLL CLAIMS: Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve the payroll claims with checks dated HGHWAYUPDATE/ED: CAIN: Mr. Cain said they havel been mowing, laying dust aide on1 the gravel roads, doing crack and seal and getting ready for paving. Mr. Bontreger asked ift they grade the gravel roads. Mr. Cain saidi it depends on the road andt they typically drag them. Mr. Bontreger asked how many miles of dust aide they do at this time oft the year. Mr. Cain said they have 262 miles of gravel and they willl hit ini front of homes andi intersections so, quite a bit. Mr. Bontreger said they will touch on this later but, they will be discussing putting up stop signs at 400 W and 8001 N. He said this process will take ai month or so to get implemented. He said in the meantime, Mr. Cain was ablet toj put up somet temporary signs. Mr. Cains said they put up "cross traffic does not stop" signs. He said they are making a list to make more intersections safer. Mr. Bontreger asked him about mowing and weeds and brush that might be an obstruction at intersections. Mr. Cain said the district guy will go take care of that. He said this year, with the heat and the rain, he's never: seen it get so tall sO quick. He said they have five mowers and they SURVEYOR DEPARTMENT UPDATE/VINCE URBANO: Mr. Urbano said they have been finishing up tilel holes and beaver trapping has been crazy. He said they" ve caught around thirty- PUBLIC COMMENT FORMS: Mr. Bontreger said they received seventeen public comments from their online form. He said fort the next month or two they will read them at the end or ifthe person ist there, they can readi itt themselves. Hei thanked everyone for their comments ands said they KIM GROW /E REQUEST FOR NEW PLAT PRINTER: Ms. Grow joined via Zoom. She said their plat printer is over twenty years old. She said the new one will allow them to copy in color. She said it is just a rental and is paid for out of the Recorder's Perpetuation Fund. She said everything has! been going great andt theyl havel beeni indexing from 1907, which] helpst thes searchers. She said she wanted people tol know that if they own property in Jasper County, to sign up for Property Fraud Alerts. She said it is free and they can contact the Recorder's Office for more information. Mr. Bontreger said they will have Attorney Beaver review the rental agreement. BURIED CABLES: Mr. Haberlin said there was four buried cable permits and they all look good. One was on! 9001 Ni in Walker Township froml Bowsler) Excavating fora a bore under the road, Mr. Walstra motioned to approve, Mr. DeYoung seconded and the motion carried. The next one was for Surf Internet in Carpenter. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve, Mr. Walstra seconded and the motion carried. Another was for Nitco inl Keener Township on' 700 W; Mr. Walstra motioned to approve, Mr. DeYoung seconded and the motion carried. The fourth one was also for Nitco in Wheatfield Township; Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve, Mr. Walstra seconded and the motion  seconded and the motion carried. the motion carried. ther motion carried.  May 15,2024 andl May 30,2024, Mr. Walstra seconded and the motion carried.  are out every day.  fivei inj people's ditches. He: said they also finished the Prevo Ditch.  dor read them andt take them tol heart.  carried.    REGUGLAR MEETING OF THE JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  JUNE3,2024  PAGE 439  PUBLIC HEARING TO CONSIDER SPEED LIMIT REDUCTIONS: Mr. Bontreger opened the  public hearing to consider the: following speed limit reductions: 1.CR 700 W: from SR 110 (CR 9001 N) tol US231 (CR1200N) 2.CR 900 W: from CR 11001 Nt to CR 1200N 3.CR 1350N1 from CR 700 Wt to CR 600 W 4.CR 11001 Ni from SR 10 (CR 800 W)t to CR 1100 W 5.CR 1100 Ni from CR 600 Wi to CR4 400 W 6.CR 11001 Ni from CR 80 Wt to SR 49( (CROE) 7.CR 12001 Ni from thel DeMotte city limits to CR 1000 W 2.CR 1000 N from SR 100 (CR800 W)t to CR900W 3.CR 11001 N from CR 400 Wt to CR80 W  351 MPH Zone:  45) MPH Zones:  1.CR4 400 W: from the railroad tracks north of SR 10 and proceeding north tot the Kankakee River  Mr. Bontreger said they willl have public comment for this topic. Mr. Frank Newton said speed limit reductions are much needed on 400 W.1 He said fori fourteen miles there's no speed limit signs fromt thei river tot thei railroad tracks. He saidt this section of400 Wist the number one minor arterial road in Jasper County and the intersection on 10i is the number two major arterial road. He said prior to them installing the flashing stop signs att the crossing, he would sit there for hours and do a survey. He said 30% oft the people would stop, 40% would slow down and the rest would blow over the tracks. He said now that the stop signs are there, it has gotten better. He said having a speed limit sign would help with enforcement. He said he thinks they need to approve lowering Mr. Bontreger asked ift there's aj policy on the frequency of speed limit signs. Mr. Cain said ifits not posted, its 551 mph. He said as far as reductions, they don'thave al lot posted that are 35 or 45 mph. He said he agrees with all of these. Mr. Bontreger asked if they make these changes, how frequent would the signs be ort the number of signs in one stretch. Mr. Cain said he would have to look at the State's traffic control manual but, he doesn't know specific distances. Mr. Bontreger saidt they should probably dol however many the maximum is. Mr. Cain saidt thisi is going to takea lot of signs andi it will take some time since they have to order them. He said they will get some necessary ones upi now. Mr. Walstra said hel has two ort three to addt to the list, including 1000N. Ms. Lindal Hanewich: said she wasn'tsurei ift they were going to talk more about 400 and 800 but, she lives on 400 W. She said there's been some blockage with bushes and at one of the intersections, iti is hardt to see. She said she would like to see a four-way stop withl blinking lights. Mr. Haberlin asked Mr. Cain how much the signs with blinking lights cost. Mr. Cain said around $1,700.00-51,800.00. Mr. Bontreger said they are pricey but, strategically placed in a hot spot would justify the cost. Mr. DeYoung motioned to close the public hearing, Mr. Walstra seconded and the motion carried. Mr. Bontreger asked if there was a motion toj pass the ordinance with the speed limit reductions. Mr. Walstra said they needt to add 700 W: inl DeMotte to 1400N to thel list. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve the speed limit reductions with the proposed changes, Mr. OPENING OF THE 2024 CCMG BIDS: Mr. Bontreger said there was a bid from Milestone for $2,095,042.50 and one from Town and Country for $1,839,873.00. Mr. Bontreger asked if they pickt thel lowest or accept alll bids. Mr. Haberlin said they will pick the lowest but, Attorney Beaver MARY SCHEURICH /SPECIAL-PURPOSE WELL /GEOLOGICAL AND STRUCTURE TEST WELL ZONING ORDINANCE: Ms. Scheurich said the Plan Commission made a recommendationt to adopt the ordinance, as presented. She said they willl havet toi make adjustments along the way but, they wanted to gets something on the books. She said the vote was 6-1 to adopt, as presented. Mr.] Bontreger said thisi is largely to makes sure the county is informed as to when  the speeds.  Walstra seconded and the motion carried.  and Mr. Dammarell, with BF&S, needt toi review before they decide.    REGUGLAR MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  JUNE3,2024  PAGE 440  MARY SCHEURICH/S SPECIAL-PURPOSE WELL / GEOLOGICAL AND STRUCTURE TEST WELL ZONING ORDINANCE CONTINUED: these types of test wells are proposed in the county. He: said they don't permit them; they are permitted at the State level. He said they are looking into what local input and control they can put into these. He said he appreciated Mr. Urbano's concerns at the Plan Commission meeting when he voted against it. He said he also understands the ones who voted for it, as they need to get something on the books to get started. He said the Plan Commission made ai favorable recommendation on this ordinance and they will likely review and make some updates. He asked if there was a motion to approve the ordinance from the Plan Commission. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve, Mr. Walstra seconded and the Mr. Bontreger asked Mr. Urbano to get with the Commissioners and Ms. Scheurich on any concerns or additional research thati might helpi improve the ordinance going forward. Mr. Urbano said his biggest thing is that thel language was put on them the Thursday before their meeting and he didn't! know where it came from. He said he felt liket the Plan Commission should've been the ones creating the language andl he felt] like it was just thrown in their lap. He said they used to be ablet to make amendments ini their meetings and recommend them to the Commissioners. He said they weren't able to do that at their last meeting so, he was confused about that. Mr. Bontreger said they will pick up their study committee meetings and continue with thist topic going forward. Mr. Urbano askedi iftherei is an applicant that comes in, ifthey only havet tol be 3001 feet away from ap property line to do this. Ms. Scheurich saidi its 900f feet. Mr. Urbano said he thought he read 300 REZONE: There was a favorable recommendation from the Plan Commission for a rezone in Keener Township from the R1 low density single-family residential to the Al conservation agricultural district at 9921 N1 1200 W.Mr. Walstra motioned to approve, Mr. DeYoung seconded AMENDMENT TO SOLAR ORDINANCE: There was no recommendation from the Plan Commission for the amendment tot the solar and! battery storage ordinance. Mr. Bontreger saidt they talked about some changes. Ms. Scheurich said one of the changes was onj page 3, under M.2.1, andi its says "Thel Economic Development Agreement may alsoi includeal Property Value Guarantee Agreement in the form found in 20.50.950.S." She said it was recommended to change "may" to "shall". Mr. Bontreger askedi ifthe Commissioners! have tor makea ai recommendation: for the change and! kickith backt tot thel Plan Commission. Ms. Scheurich said that's what she was told but, likel Mr. Urbano said, the Plan Commission used to make changes to the ordinances to recommend to the Commissioners. She said there has been some miscommunication. She said if they make the changes, they wills send itl back tot the Plan Commission. Attorney Beaver said according tos statute, the Commissioners can either accept, as presented, reject it, or return it to the Plan Commission with suggested changes. He said then, the Plan Commission can act on it. Mr. Bontreger askedi if Attorney Beaver or Ms. Scheurich would prefer that they suggest the change and send it back or maket the change and vote oni it. Attorney Beaver saidi ifthey wish, they could accept the suggested change if they have no other thoughts on the ordinance or they can suggest changes back to the Plan Commission. Ms. Scheurich said she agrees and they could make the changes but, she does Ms. Scheurich said under M.2.A.4, the Plan Commission would like added language that reads All legal services that might be conducted by the County." She said it says "Agreement for Reimbursement of the County's costs to retain consultants for permit review and for construction compliance monitoring." Mr. DeYoung said he agrees with that because, they have run into way Ms. Scheurich said under) K. Landscapel Buffer, it was suggested to add language regarding a liner for thel battery energy storage systems. She said so, they would! have al liner underneath tol keep in  motion carried.  feet, which was concerning.  andi the motion carried.  haver more changes.  too muche extra spending.    REGUGLAR MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  JUNE3,2024  PAGE 441  AMENDMENT TOSOLAR ORDINANCE CONTINUED: any leaks. Mr. Bontreger said they willi needt to doal littler research ont thisl because, from] his understanding the containers are supposed Ms. Scheurich said under M.2.N., for the Decommissioning Agreement, it was recommended to add language that requires the solar array owner to provide monthly power production data by parcel tot the County sO, decommissioning requirements in the ordinance are enforceable. She said if they don't know whether or not they are producing then, how could they address decommissioning when they talk about it sitting for twelve months without producing. She said Ms. Scheurich said shel had one: more: recommendation from the Plan Commission. She said itis for the setback on the battery energy storage. They recommend it be larger than 900 feet from adjoining property lines. She said 2.A. says "Shall be set back a minimum of 900 feet from any adjoining property line; and" B. "Shall be subject to an enhanced minimum setback distance of 1,320 feet from the property line ofa any) BESS non-participating adjoining parcel." Mr. Bontreger askedi ift they hada a suggested number if900f feet isn't enough. Ms. Scheurich saids she heard many suggestions. Mr. Bontreger said they should probably take this under advisement to make some There were discussions about the liners again. Mr. Bontreger said in addition to finding out about the liner, maybe they can add language about remediation if there was some sort of leak. Mr. DeYoung motioned to take the ordinance concerning solar and battery energy storage systems under advisement for further review and modification, Mr. Walstra seconded and the motion Ms. Scheurich asked Attorney Beaveri ift the Commissioners have to do something within 90 days. Attorney Beaver saidt that is correct and said they have 90 days to act. He: said in order for that to happen, a notice tot the news media 481 hours prior to the meeting willl bei required or they can have another public hearing if they choose. He said if it's a "for recommendation" and the Commissioners don'tact then, iti is passed andi ifi its an anti-recommendation then, iti isi not. SOLARPACK AGREEMENTS FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT /J ROAD USE/ DECOMMISSIONING: Attorney Beaver said last fall, Solarpack came through and they negotiated agreements for Economic Development, which included an abatement. He said the Council didn't approve the abatement but, that did not stop the project since they already have BZA approval that was given a couple of years ago. He said Solarpack is now coming back because, they wisht top proceed with the project without the abatement. Hes saidt they are also willing to give the county ai much smaller Economic Development Agreement. He said there was some highlights he wanted toj point out. The first one was that this is a 60: mega watt project, which is about 22% oft the size of Dunns Bridge 2. He said the agreement would include payments in lieu oftaxes, whichi is] pilot taxes. He said ifthere's changes in depreciation: schedules that are allowed under law, they will still pay the county any differences and their taxes won't go down. He said fort twenty years after the property goes into commercial generation of power, there's an agreed minimum assessed value of22 million dollars. He said this puts a floor on the property taxes. He said for utilities, their personal property is a State distributable property so, they report their property to the State. He said the State will then send a report to the Assessor saying how much Attorney Beaver said they will also reimburse the county for the professional fees that were paid for by the county last year, which was $83,000.00. Mr. Bontreger said this was from the negotiations about the Economic Development Agreement. Attorney Beaver said Solarpack will also be covering the attorney fees going forward with this. He said on top of that, they have discussed the construction compliance process and they are on board with it. He said they will commit $80,000.00 to the county up front and will be paid through the claims process. Anything  tol bel lined, asi is.  then, it would need decommissioned.  changes andl kicki it backt to thel Plan Commission. Mr. DeYoung agreed.  carried.  their assessed value is in the county.  remaining willl be returned to Solarpack.    REGUGLAR: MEETING OFTHE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  JUNE3,2024  PAGE 442  SOLARPACK AGREEMENTS FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT / ROAD USE / DECOMMESIONING CONTINUED: Attorney Beaver said there's also the Decommissioning Agreement, which follows the ordinance they have. He said the decommissioning plan is Solarpack would remove each generating unit and also restore and reclaim the property with an agricultural soilr reclamation plan. Hes saidt they willl ber responsible for determining the neti removal cost. He: said an engineer would be selected by Solarpack but, the county gets a say ini it and they will come to an agreement on an engineer to determine those costs. He said Solarpack would pay this upfront to a recreation fund given to the Planning & Development Director for approval by Attorney Beaver said the Road-Use Agreement is the same as what has been negotiated, which provides all of the conditions that were asked previously. He: said in addition, they are willing to posta 3.5-million-dollar bond. Hes said this is thes same amount that was posted for Dunns Bridge 21 but, that project used thirty miles of County road and this project would be about seven miles. Hes said this bond should cover all of the County's concerns. He said Solarpack was happy with thei idea ofa construction compliance monitor. He said any complaints from the public, neighbors or the County, will be filtered through the compliance monitor, who would then bring them up Attorney Beaver said this has been through the BZA sO, they have their special exception, which requires them to commence activity around August. He said they need this agreement toj proceed. He said he wanted to add that they had Baker Tilly do an analysis during their negotiations and even without the EDA, they get no abatement and pay 100% of the taxes. He said every dollar Solarpack pays int taxesi isa dollar that Jasper County residents don'thavei toj pay int taxes. He said they are expected toj pay $364,000.00: int taxes beginning in year three. He said through year ten, it would be about 3.81 million dollars int total property taxes. Hes saidt this doesn'taccount: fori income taxes that willl be paid on the leases by the landowners. He said this results in a reduction of tax Mr. Walstrai motioned to approve the: agreements with Solarpack, Mr. DeYoung seconded and the Mr. Bontreger said they will need to determine their construction compliance monitoring firm, which they have a couple of options. He asked Attorney Beaver if they could put this on their agenda for two weeks from now. Attorney Beaver said they usually continue the meeting to two weeks but, they couldn't change the agenda. He said they could advertise a Special Meeting for EDP RENEWABLES /ADDENDUM TO COSISHAEINGAGENENE /I INTERLOCAL AGREEMENTMOU WITH1 THETOWN OF REMINGTONI FOR SHARINGCOSTS: Attorney Beaver said this topic is more progress on the EDP Renewables where they requested for the change in zoning maps to add the overlay district. He said the Plan Commission had made a recommendation that the County have a construction compliance monitor. He said the Commissioner'sl had! held an executive session where they interviewed different engineering firms. He said then, they entered into an agreement with EDP to cover the costs of the construction compliance monitor. He said with EDPI having met the conditions, the Commissioners approved the overlay district. He said now, EDP desires to go before the Remington BZA. He said the Remington BZA likes the idea ofa construction compliance monitor and would like to also hire BF&S. He said the easiest way to do thisi is tol have an addendum to the existing agreement with EDP.] Hes said they would addt thei reimbursable: servicest that are al benefitt tot the Town of Remington anda addt them as aj party. Attorney Beaver said they alsol have al MOU with the Town of Remington that says the County will pay all of the costs. He said the County will pay for these through the claims process with the dedicated fund that EDP will be funding. He said the Town will be permittedt to communicate witht the engineering company. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve, Mr.  the county. He said every five years the cost would be updated.  witht the company.  rates for. Jasper County residents.  motion carried.  two weeksi instead and! have an agenda fort that meeting.  Walstra seconded andt thei motion carried.    REGUGLAR MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY: BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  JUNE: 3,2024 OTHER BUSINESS  PAGE4 443  SURVEYOR VINCE URBANO: Mr. Urbano said that HWC completed a drainage study of the easts side of65i in] Remington. Hes saidt thisi includes the campground, Inteplast and the chrome shop. He said they willl have to put a lift station in and pump the water because, they do not have the natural elevations int the area to create drainage for themselves. Hes said the hopes for Remington JACK HABERLIN/JAKE DAMMARELL/ CONTRACT FOR INDOT: Mr. Haberlin said he wanted to talk about Bridge 102 in Remington. He said they got an 80/20 match grant and they can got tol bidi fori iti int thei fall. Mr. Dammarell said that INDOT needsa a signed contract that reviews BF&S services. Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve the contract, contingent on INDOT's CCMG) BIDS CONTINUED: Mr. DeYoung motioned to approve the bid from Town & Country HEATHER VANDEMARK /MORATORIUMS: Ms. Vandemark asked why the County can't place ai moratorium for the co2 pipeline and wells. She also said they should've waited toj pass the test well ordinance and look into it more. She asked if the setback was 300 or 900 feet. Mr. Bontreger said he thought it was 900.1 Mr. DeYoung saidl he read 900. Ms. Vandemark said ifit's thel language that Ms. Scheurich had sent her, its said 300: feet. She said they voted on something without knowing the footage sO, she would like to know why they can't do a moratorium for something that needs more investigating. Mr. Bontreger said the State has permitted the test wells so, he doesn'tthink they can write al local ordinancet to override the State. Attorney Beaver said he is correct. Mr. Bontreger said this is a starting point and they are going to have to make adjustments. He said they need the geological data to rule them out SO, he doesn't think they can place a moratorium because, they would be facing al legal battle. He referred to Newton County, whol had actual data andi it showed insufficient pores space toi inject at scale so, hei is hoping fort the Ms. Vandemark asked if there has been work on a co2 ordinance. Mr. Bontreger said there is language inj progress. He said thisi is taking longer than hel had hoped but, from whatl hel hasl heard, the timeline has been pushed back so, they won't! bej putting iti in soon. He said they are looking at their local options including zoning. He said the State gave authority for the permits for injection wells and the Federal class 61 pipeline permit is from the Federal government. Ms. Vandemark asked again why they can'th have ai moratorium. She said she would like a legal reason why. Attorney Beaver said they have suspended seismic testing on our roads, which is aj part of the permitting process but, this would be zoning. He said with zoning, you get grandfathered ifyou don't have aj prohibition on the zoning ordinance then, they can go do it. He said this is why something needed tol be done quicklyt tol have something ont thel books to set requirements. He said ifthe requirements are too: strong, such as ai moratorium that says you can'to do it then, they would bei facinga al lawsuit: forb blockinga a State permit. Hes saida ar moratorium on wellsi isi nott the appropriate angle. He said it is clear under State law that local governments do have express authority to regulate the location of drilling and mining. He said having this authority doesn'tmean they can override a State issued permit. He said they don't have the same level of clarity on the pipeline Attorney Beaver said he previously mentioned that in Iowa, there is active Federal litigation that is under appeal. He said two counties in Iowa permanently joined their zoning ordinances to prohibit pipeline regulation for a Federal co2 injection permit. He said there are three different entities that are in support of the local government, including Farm Bureau, that have filed an amicus brief. He saidt they are making good arguments to say why the Federal District. Judge was incorrect in determining that local government had no authority to any zoning regulation on  are to develop the east side of65 all the way to the County line.  approval, Mr. Walstra seconded and the motion carried. for $1,839,873.00, Mr. Walstra seconded andt the motion carried.  PUBLICCOMMENT  same resulti in. Jasper County.  regulations.    REGUGLAR MEETING OF THE JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  JUNE: 3,2024  PAGE 444  HEATHER VANDEMARK/MORATORIUMS CONTINUED: pipelines. He saidt thisi isi inl Iowa, not Indiana but, they are years ahead of where we are right now with BP. Hes said ift the appeal is unsuccessful then, thoset two counties will be facing large fees. He said) he doesn't want to expose Ms. Vandemark asked if Attorney Beaver was saying that they can'tp place a moratorium for the test wells ora a pipeline. Attorney Beaver said definitely for aj pipeline. He: said when therei isa State permit, a moratorium wouldn't prevent a well from being drilled. He said he doesn't think they can do aj moratorium on wells either. He: said he doesn'twant anyone tot think hei isi in favor ofthis. He said he is 100% opposed to co2 pipelines in. Jasper County but, hel has to remain objective in his assessments. Mr. Bontreger said he knows it would give short-term satisfaction to place a moratorium but, he wants to make sure their methods are affective. He said he knows it would make a public statement but, they are making statements directly to the company about their concerns. Ms. Vandemark asked what the issue is with having a: moratorium for something. Mr. Bontreger said they did place the moratorium for seismic testing but, they can still go on State JANI DUTTLINGER: DeMotte resident, Ms. Duttlinger read her public comment she submitted. Wer needt tos stopa all these' green" projects. They are based on lies, area a massive abuse oft taxpayer funds, are driven by greed and political interests, and waste and degrade working farm ground that is needed for foodp production, for national security. Any economic benefit that is promoted favors af few, while harming all, and willl be short-term, at best. Ultimately leaving local residents with ruined property values, a degraded local environment, and potential for massive clean-up that will be beyond expensive, ift the damage can truly even be mitigated. It is also important to note = much of thel harm that will be done may be almost impossible to "prove" without untenable cost tot thei individuals who will bel harmed, leaving them ata a huge disadvantage against corporate and governmental interests against whom they'd have to fight. I don't want the way of life of this county, which has been home to multiple generations of my family, destroyed. This county SHOULD NOT allow itself to be turned into a utility closet and dumping ground for outside DOUG BURTON: Mr. Burton expressed his conçerns about subsidies for wind and solar developments. He suggested having subsidies for new developments. He also said he wanted to FRANKNEWTON: Mr. Newton said! he understands that Dunns Bridge and Solarpack are a done deal. He said hel has been talking with five entities that have shown interest in coming to. Jasper County but, they are concerned witht the: future of Jasper County ands solar. He also said they should MICHELLE HOFFMAN: Ms. Hoffman said at aj previous meeting, it was mentioned that EDP released an article about aj phase two study. EDP Executive President had said this was not for a phase two oft thep project; it was for aj phase two environmental site assessment. Ms. Hoffman asked ift the Commissioners had received the results. Mr. Bontreger said he wasn't sure and he would BARB NEHOUSER: Ms. Neihouser said Fountain County Council passed a resolution establishing and approving moratorium. She said there was language in there that could] help. She also said she previously talked about ai notice from the. Attorney General and how she suggested passing a resolution of support. She asked if they had considered this. Mr. Bontreger said he reviewed the paper work but, they haven'tdone: anything. He said their strategy ist tol have affective conversations with the companies directly. He said he understands that a resolution could have some valuel but, they are still considering it. Ms. Neihouser also suggested to get aj projection for  Jasper County to that risk.  roads.  interests and other cities, towns, orl localities." talk about co2 ands said climate change is al hoax.  limit the amount of solar coming in.  follow up withi it.  the meetings toj project documents forp people to follow along.    REGUGLAR MEETING OF THE. JASPER COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS  JUNE: 3,2024  PAGE4 445  DANIEL STRAKA/LAND Al LIBERTY COALITION: Mr. Straka, Lake County resident and Land and Liberty Coalition representative, said they have been talking about updating solar and battery storage ordinances and he said his concern is the property value guarantee. He asked how the County planned on legally enforcing aj property value guarantee. Mr. Bontreger said they have the language spelled out in the ordinances and landowners will have the opportunity to make a claim on thej process. He said the reason they are revisiting these ordinances is because, they are having experiences, after thef fact, ine expressing the concerns ofnon-participating landowners and howi ita affects the entire county. He said they are trying to be mindful of the concerns from people and this is why they have construction compliance monitors for these projects. He said they are trying to allow landowners to make decisions on what they wantt to do without creating undo harm to their neighbors. Mr. Straka said they follow ordinances around the state and currently work in forty counties across Indiana. He said he knows there is al lot oftalk about solar taking up all the farm land but, the amount of development that will happen in Jasper County will rely on transmission lines. Hes said ata a certain point, it wills stopa and there willl bel lessi interest in1 the county. Hes said! he would bel happy to meet with the Commissioners or anyone from the community to talk aboutt their experiences: and] help draft an ordinance. Mr. Bontreger said! he doesn'texpect: any more large-scale solar projects coming to. Jasper County. He said they are trying to address the fact that they don't want acres ofc container-size batteries. Hes said they aret trying to direct that development towards] NIPSCO's campus. Mr. Straka said his organization hasi resources for battery storage. Mr. Bontreger saidt they willt take additional data on the storage liners. Mr. Straka said! he will get back tol him ont that. Hes said there'sal lot of questions throughout the State about battery storage. JACOB MISCH: Mr. Misch asked what it would hurt to have the liners as an added layer of protection to the residents and natural resources. He said he was proud of the citizens that took part in the study committee, Ms. Scheurich and her office and the Plan Commission. He said he feels liket they arel heading in the right direction. He said while Ms. Vandemark was speaking, he was disappointed in the Commissioners for voting on an ordinance they didn't understand fully. He said the County needs more subject matter expertise. He said they need more legal expertise and not to take away from Attorney Beaver but, he can't be the end-all-be-all. He said BP, Solarpack and NextEra have teams of lawyers that are laser focused on getting these projects FRANK NEWTON: Mr. Newton asked ift they were going tol have more town hall meetings. Mr. MARTHA MARY: Wheatfield resident, Ms. Mary, said she wanted share a comment she heard from an expert ont the solar panels ont t.v. He said 95% of the energy from the solar panels is non- dispatchable. Shea asked why they are even doingi itifitd doesn'twork. Mr. DeYoungs saidaNIPSCO representative told them for three weeks straight, the solar panels made more electricity than the Mr. Walstra motioned to continue the meeting tol Monday, June 17,2024at8 8:30A.M. C.S.T., Mr.  through.  Bontreger said they willl have more down the line.  Schahfer plant did per day.  DeYoung seconded and the: motion carried.  CuRa Rein Bontreger, President LuahslE James A. Walstra, Vice President g  ATTEST:  D S.Gpany Donya G.. Jordan, Auditor of Jasper County  Geyl