The Oshtemo Township Board approved the first reading of a moratorium on new solar energy applications.
The moratorium is meant to prevent any new solar project from moving forward while the township’s Planning Commission continues work on a broader energy systems ordinance covering solar, battery storage, and related technology, a process officials said is still ongoing after a recent public hearing. Because solar already has a “principal use” classification under the township’s existing zoning ordinance, officials said the moratorium needed to explicitly close off a potential workaround: applying for a solar project under the township’s “essential services” category, which is allowed in rural residential districts without special-use review.
During public comment, a resident asked why the township’s separate moratorium on battery energy storage systems, adopted last November, didn’t include that same essential-services exclusion. The township attorney indicated the battery storage ordinance doesn’t currently have a “principal use” classification the way solar does, so a battery facility couldn’t qualify as an essential service under existing rules. A board member said the township expects to need to extend the battery storage moratorium before it expires, and suggested adding the same explicit exclusion at that point.
The second reading and adoption is planned for October 13.
