Hardy Hills Solar Project near Kilmore north of Frankfort is in full construction mode and driving 800 posts a day now. The 195 Megawatt project at peak capacity will contribute enough electricity to serve almost 37,000 homes when completed. The building of the solar array will be a 14 month process that started July 2022.<\/p>\n

The site is buzzing with activity as two substations, 1400 acres of solar panels, access roads and street cleaners operate around the site. One substation will be operated by the Hardy Hills project and the other substation will be operated by Duke Energy.  <\/p>\n

Every morning at about 8 AM the rapid \u201crat..tat\u2026tat\u201d of driving 800 posts or \u201cPiles\u201d into the ground can be heard for miles around. One advantage of the pile system is no concrete is used to construct most parts of the solar array, insuring much less disruption of the soil and easier removal to restore the land to agricultural uses after 25 or 50 years if desired. The current contract is for 25 years renewable for a second 25 year period.<\/p>\n

Liz Stitzel, Clinton County Area Plan Commission director, spoke Thursday evening to the Frankfort Rotary Club at Arborwood.  Stitzel laid out the history of the project from conception to approval to current progress. WILO AM-FM and Hoosierland TV played a role in the approval process during the worst part of the COVID-19 pandemic. Questions for one meeting were taken from drive-by cars at the Edward Jones Building at the fairgrounds.  \u201cAttendees\u201d were listening to the proceedings on their car radios while the entire public meeting was also broadcast on Hoosierland TV, which never has a paywall, so anyone who wanted to watch or listen on the radio could \u201cattend\u201d the meeting and text questions to the panel. These two meetings are still viewable on Hoosierland TV. Just enter \u201cSolar\u201d in the search bar to view.<\/p>\n