The DeKalb County Board approved Ordinance O2025-21, authorizing a conditional-use permit for a 4.35-megawatt commercial solar energy system on the north side of Coltonville Road in DeKalb and Mayfield counties. The Planning and Zoning Committee presented the ordinance, and the board voted by roll call; the chair announced the motion carried with 16 affirmative votes.

Residents who spoke during the public-comment period opposed the project on grounds including loss of nearby wildlife habitat, effects on property values and claims about noise, glare and electrical interference from inverters and transformers. One commenter said the inverters and transformers "make noise 24 7. They give out glare and glow and noise and dirty electricity and straight voltage." Another resident raised concerns about proximity to homes and argued the change in land use would harm the neighborhood.

Property owner Jerry Walling, who said his family has owned the land since 1891, spoke in favor of the project and said the developer had agreed to a 150-foot buffer from the nearest homes and to plant vegetation. "My family has kept this farmland for over a hundred and 30 years," Walling said, adding the company had agreed to a buffer and plantings to screen residences. A commercial broker who said he had worked on the property for four years also supported the project, arguing it would produce tax revenue for local taxing bodies and provide local clean energy and habitat benefits if pollinator plantings are used.

The ordinance as introduced to the board is identified as O2025-21 and was described in the Planning and Zoning report as a permit for a 4.35-megawatt commercial solar energy system on the north side of Coltonville Road. The transcript records a roll-call vote with several members recorded as voting "no" (including Johnson, Marcinkowski, Bagby, Bonsack, Hyer and Haney) and others recorded as voting "yes" or "aye." The chair announced "Motion carries 16." The transcript does not include the full permit conditions or the developer's final mitigation commitments beyond the public comments noted.