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July 10,2024 <br />City of Hugo Planning Commission <br />14669 Fitzgerald Ave N <br />Hugo,MN 55038 <br />Re:Proposed Solar Ordinance in Hugo <br />The Center for Rural Affairs is a private non-profit organization that advocates for policies that <br />strengthen rural communities in order to create a more vibrant future.We connect rural citizens <br />with opportunities to engage in the decisions that affect their lives,and one of the biggest of <br />these is the opportunity to decide how their electricity is generated. <br />Solar energy systems provide diversified income to landowners who have a right to decide how <br />to use their land in a way that works best for them.They also allow communities to invest in <br />solutions to offset energy usage and reduce energy costs. <br />With the potential benefits that solar energy development offers the residents of Hugo,creating <br />an ordinance that balances the interests of the city and its community members,and protects <br />landowner rights,is essential.We commend the Hugo Planning Commission for taking the time <br />to introduce a detailed solar ordinance and for their consideration of community needs and <br />concerns. <br />Regarding the proposed ordinance amendment to prohibit solar farms within any zoning district <br />within the city,we recommend that the commission may want to reconsider some language <br />within the amendment.The language for what constitutes a "solar farm"is imprecise and could <br />limit the ability of some landowners to install even a small number of solar panels on land they <br />own.We recommend that if the intent is to limit the development or purely commercial solar <br />energy systems,that the commission consider alternative language that clarifies systems that are <br />intended only for the generation of energy for commercial sale. <br />Additionally,if the intention is to limit utility-scale solar,we recommend that the city use the <br />standard for net metering to identify a capacity limit for individual installed solar systems versus <br />utility-scale systems to make the ordinance language more precise.This means that if a customer <br />produces more electricity than they use,the utility will pay them for the extra power.For <br />reference,the system capacity limit for net metering in Minnesota is 1 megawatt.Using the <br />standard for net metering would limit the exclusion of homeowners and landowners that want to <br />install solar energy systems to meet their own energy needs.You can learn more about net <br />metering in Minnesota here. <br />Submitted along with this comment are some resources that may be useful during discussions on <br />the proposed solar ordinance amendment.Additionally,our full clean energy siting library can be <br />viewed at cfra.org/cleanenergysiting.If you have any questions,please do not hesitate to contact <br />me.