Tom Cooperrider, a Hartford Township trustee, said area farmers have been approached about leasing their land.
“I signed up more than a year ago, Cooperrider said. They’re just looking for good ground to lease for a solar panel project. Farmers here signed up for that. I think it’d be a pretty good chunk of money for the school system.”
State Sen. Jay Hottinger, R-Newark, said he met recently with Kevin DeWine, a lobbyist who represents Open Road Renewables. Hottinger said the proposal was for a 350-megawatt solar field.
State law assesses $7,000 per megawatt for solar and wind fields. Based on 350 megawatts, the company would pay $2.45 million annually, in lieu of taxes, to local property tax recipients. The amount could be increased to up to $9,000 per megawatt, which would boost the annual payments to $3.15 million.
December 14, 2020
The Van Buren County Sheriff’s Department was able to bring a 19-year-old Bangor man into custody after he led deputies on a chase Saturday. The department says the man took off when a deputy tried to pull him over for a traffic violation in Hartford Township around 5:30 p.m. The chase continued for several miles until the man crashed in a plowed field. He then ran into some woods, but deputies and K9 Bruno were able to find him hiding on the ground. The suspect was taken into custody with no further problems. He’s now facing felony charges.