photo by: Shutterstock

Solar panels are shown in this photo from Shutterstock.

An open house will be held to discuss a stormwater management plan for a large solar project in Douglas County on Wednesday.

The Kansas Sky Energy Center plans to install 8 million square feet of solar panels on approximately 600 acres of farmland in the Kansas River valley, located in northern Douglas County. This project, which has been controversial among county residents, requires two approvals from the County Commission before it can move forward. The open house on Wednesday will discuss one of these necessary approvals, the stormwater management plan.

As the Journal-World reported, a federal judge ruled that a lawsuit filed by Lawrence area businesses and neighbors protesting the Kansas Sky Energy Center will be heard in Douglas County District Court rather than federal court. There’s now a possibility that the project could be decided after the Nov. 5 election, but before the new county commissioners take office in January.

The plan being discussed on Wednesday could have major implications for whether the rainwater runoff from the solar panels will cause flooding issues for the North Lawrence neighborhood downstream of the project. Members of the public will be given the opportunity to learn about the project’s stormwater management report and provide feedback.

The event will have stations of information with subject matter experts ready to answer questions, said Development Director Brianna Baca in an email to the Journal-World.

Baca did not provide a timeline for when the stormwater management plan would go before the Douglas County Commission for approval, but she said the county is currently reviewing the plan and providing feedback.

The other plan that needs final approval from the commission is the agrivoltaics plan, which refers to how agriculture activities can continue to happen in conjunction with the solar panels. Baca said via email that the plan is complete and has been sent to the county for review.

“Once the staff comments have been received and addressed within the plan, it will be posted on the project website as well,” Baca said in the email. “We will not have an additional open house as the stakeholders and public have been more engaged throughout the process of creating the plan.”

The open house for the stormwater plan will be held at the Lawrence Union Pacific Depot, 402 N. Second St., on Wednesday, and people are welcome to stop by anytime between 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The final stormwater management report will be posted for public viewing on the project’s website after input from the public at kansasskyenergycenter.com/cupdocuments.