Larry Pendleton, at right, talks with a NextEra Energy official on Thursday, July 25, at the Camanche (Iowa) Community Center after a public meeting on the proposed Rock Creek Solar Project. The project will be built on about 1,000 acres in rural Clinton County. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
CAMANCHE, Iowa – A massive $216 million solar energy project will create hundreds of construction jobs, bring in millions of dollars in local tax money, and produce lots of clean energy. Those are the hopes and goals of the energy company putting together the proposed Rock Creek Solar Project, which could begin construction next year […]
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CAMANCHE, Iowa – A massive $216 million solar energy project will create hundreds of construction jobs, bring in millions of dollars in local tax money, and produce lots of clean energy.Those are the hopes and goals of the energy company putting together the proposed Rock Creek Solar Project, which could begin construction next year and be operational in the fall of 2026. It will be located on more than 1,000 acres in rural Clinton County.
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Kimberly Dickey, a project director for NextEra Energy, talks about the proposed Rock Creek Solar Project that will span about 1,000 acres of rural land in Clinton County. The company held a public meeting Thursday, July 25, in Camanche, Iowa. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Kimberly Dickey, left, a project director for NextEra Energy, listens to questions and comments from the public Thursday, July 25, during a public meeting in Camanche, Iowa. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
This map shows the boundaries of the proposed Rock Creek Solar Project that will be built on about 1,000 acres of rural land in Clinton County, Iowa. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Members of the audience listen to a presentation Thursday, July 25, on the proposed Rock Creek Solar Project being planned for a 1,000-acre site in rural Clinton County, Iowa. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
“Solar projects are successful when landowner interests and community support align,” said Kimberly Dickey, a project director for NextEra Energy, the company behind the new solar project.Ms. Dickey was the key speaker and presenter during a public meeting late Thursday, July 25, at the Camanche Community Center. That meeting, which attracted about 80 people, had the goal of presenting a project update to the landowners with property located within the proposed solar project area as well as giving them a chance to make comments and ask questions. The proposed project is in the midst of seeking permission from the Iowa Utilities Commission (IUC) for the solar energy plan. (NextEra Energy and IUC officials hosted a similar public meeting on Wednesday, July 24, at the Hawkeye Downs Expo Center in southwest Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to discuss a new Duane Arnold Solar IV energy project.)Ms. Dickey also gave an update on the Rock Creek Solar Project and the proposed Clinton County Wind Project during a meeting in Clinton, Iowa, last July.At the latest meeting in Camanche, area landowners got the chance to ask questions on some of the details of the solar energy plan. Also, they mostly praised the project, saying it is needed and will help the community and landowners.“I’ve been a farmer my whole life. I had little to no interest in this project at first. … But we kept the lines of communications open,” said Lewis Todtz, a participating landowner in the solar project boundaries in rural Clinton County.During Thursday’s hour-long meeting, Mr. Todtz added he has come to realize the world needs the clean energy that will be produced by the Rock Creek Solar Project. He also praised NextEra Energy officials, saying they were great to work with.“We are in a world today that needs this … and we can help make it happen,” he added.But not all the comments made offered praise for the solar project. A woman, who lives within the proposed solar project area, criticized NextEra and the project. She said company officials have been unfriendly and “almost combative” when she voiced her concerns about having to live next to numerous solar panels.The woman, who did not give her name during the meeting or to the QCBJ in a brief interview afterwards, said she has a rural home south of Low Moor. If the project is approved, her home will almost be surrounded by acres of solar panels, and that environment is not worth the $1,500 annual payment NextEra Energy is offering her family. She added that while NextEra is offering a good deal to landowners in the project area, it’s not a good deal to homeowners who live in the rural area.Other landowners had questions about the impact of the project, such as traffic on their properties and the effects the solar equipment will have on the land.“I wanted to know about the snow drifting around the panels in the winter. … The (company) is in the process of getting me information on this, so they’re kind of addressing it,” said Larry Pendleton, a landowner who asked about those impacts during the meeting.Here are some of the Rock Creek Solar Project’s details:
Size and location: The project will take up 1,032 acres in rural Clinton County with solar panels on 244 of those acres. The eastern edges of the project area will be in parts of the cities of Clinton and Camanche. It extends west, south of Low Moor and north of Folletts. Company officials, though, did not say how many solar panels could be included in the project area. When the QCBJ asked Ms. Dickey about the number of panels after Thursday’s meeting, she said she was not authorized to talk with the media. NextEra did not respond to the QCBJ’s question as of this story’s deadline.
Energy production: The solar arrays will be capable of generating up to 150 megawatts (MW) of clean, renewable energy, and store up to 75 MW.
Project cost: The Rock Creek Solar Project is expected to cost the company at least $216 million.
Project timeline: The solar project began in 2020 with land leasing. Engineering and design took place in 2022-2024. Microsite and survey work are happening this year. Permitting will continue through 2025. Construction will take 14 to 18 months and is expected to be complete in the fall of 2026.
Jobs: The project is expected to create about 200 construction jobs. After it is complete, there will be one or two full-time positions created to run the project.
Economic impact: Project officials estimated there will be $1.7 million a year of new long-term impact for Clinton County.
Tax revenues: There will be about $11.6 million in property taxes over the life of the project, which is about 30 years. There will be about $6.2 million in school district revenues over the life of the project.
Landowner information: More than 25 private landowners are participating in the project. The property easements are 100% voluntary. Eminent domain will not be used in the project.
Next steps: NextEra Energy officials said the next steps in the solar project will include: micrositing, detailed design work, ongoing local and state permitting, ongoing landowner and agency coordination before construction starts.
Contact information: Iowa Utilities Commission, 1375 E. Court Ave., Des Moines, Iowa 50319; (515) 725) 7300; or email [email protected]. The Rock Creek Solar project’s local office is located at 1320 11th St., SW, Clinton. Go here for online contact information.
NextEra Energy, based in Juno Beach, Florida, calls itself the world’s largest producer of wind and solar energy. In Iowa, the company states it has 13 wind energy centers in operation, one generation service and repair facility, one training facility, two solar projects in development, one energy storage project in development and one wind project in development.
