Large-scale solar farms will not be allowed on Fayette County farmland.
The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council voted unanimously Thursday to approve a controversial zone text amendment regulating solar throughout Fayette County after more than a year of debate.
But the debate over solar on farmland is not over.
The council has said it will put together a work group, which will include agricultural and environmental interests, to further explore solar and the complex rules and regulations that oversee it.
A key point of contention was whether to allow solar on farmland or land zone agriculture, which pitted agricultural preservationists against some environmentalists, who wanted more land available for large-scale solar.
It’s a debate other local governments are also facing as more private and public utilities look for land to add solar throughout the country.
Silicon Ranch, a Nashville-based solar company, proposed the zone text amendment in 2024 to allow solar on agriculture land. The company wants to put a solar farm on 800-acres in eastern Fayette County.
Currently, the city’s zoning is silent on where solar can be located.
The Urban County Planning Commission, which also has a say on zone text amendments, voted in September 2024 to allow solar in many residential and business zones but ultimately opted not to allow large-scale solar on agriculture land.
Some on council had proposed allowing a limited amount of solar — 2% — on agricultural land, but during an Aug. 19 council work session, proponents of the cap said there were not enough votes on the 15-member council to move the compromise forward.
However, the council, in a separate motion, put a 2% cap on agricultural land to signal to the Public Service Commission that’s what the county wants.
Large-scale solar farms can be overseen by different state and local governments.
The Public Service Commission oversees all public utilities. Public utilities do not need a zone change for solar. Silicon Ranch is private and would have sought a zone change if the zone text amendment allowing solar to go through.
The Public Service Commission has already approved a nearly 400-acre solar farm proposed by East Kentucky Power along Interstate 64 and Winchester Road.
The city is also exploring putting solar on the closed Haley Pike landfill. That land is not zoned agricultural.