Invenergy will hold a public information meeting next month to get feedback on the 180-megawat Sloopy Solar Energy Center proposed in Harmony Twp. between South Charleston and South Vienna, which could create hundreds of new jobs.
The meeting will be held from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 8, at Clark State College’s Hollenbeck Bayley and Creative Arts and Conference Center, according to an Invenergy representative.
It will be an open house type meeting with different stations about different parts of the project, where you can talk to people and learn more, the representative said.
The project could also generate more than just power.
“The project will have about a $430 million investment in the community with about 200 local jobs during construction and as part of 500 jobs during construction for the whole state,” the representative said.
The solar installation would be able to power an estimated 33,000 homes annually if fully built out, according to project developer Gaby Rubio.
The proposed project includes 1,600 acres for solar panels; however, the total acreage may change based on results from studies that are still being conducted.
The solar installation would encompass land on the far eastern edge of Clark County around the existing railroad line. The boundary then goes to the south by Summerford Road and to the north near London-Plattsburg Road.
Project representatives have been in the area to introduce the project to the county, answers questions and collect resident feedback.
Invenergy said it would use public feedback to work with Clark County and nearby residents to develop a Sloopy Solar project that “works for the company and the community.”
Before this first meeting, officials will release the economic impact statement on the project, in which they hired an economic analysis out of the University of Illinois.
Officials will have a second public information meeting, which has not been scheduled yet. Then Invenergy will present their application for Sloopy within 90 days to the Ohio Power Siting Board (OPSB). The OPSB then has nine months to review the project.
The community can visit the local project office at 150 W. Mound St. in South Charleston. For more information, visit sloopysolar.invenergy.com.
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