The Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) led an informational meeting yesterday between representatives for the newly proposed Goldfinch Solar project and the citizens of Washington County. The project will occupy over 2,000 acres of land in Washington County that 15 landowners provided in the county. Chad Little, the Vice President of Development for Goldfinch Solar, assured those in attendance that this project was not a result of eminent domain and would never be associated with any form of eminent domain.

The groups making up the project team are Bechtel Corporation, Conifer Power Company, and Stantec Environmental Consultants. The projected total cost of the project is around $250 million, and the project will not be started until a power purchase agreement has been finalized.

Little says that “This meeting was the first step in the IUB review and approval process, and the Bechtel/Conifer team is looking forward to an ongoing dialogue with the community, answering questions, and gathering feedback from residents as dedicated community partners to bring the best possible project and all its benefits to Washington County.”

Washington County Board of Supervisors member Jack Seward was present at the meeting and asked several questions during the Q&A sessions and said that he would still like more information on how much of this project is subsidized. “I asked them a couple of questions, and they said they’ll have to do some more evaluating and get back to us. So that’s going to come later, and we’ll have a better understanding of the tax situation after that. They aid there are production tax credits and investment tax credits involved. So, it’s really a fluid situation right now because they haven’t spent any money on it yet.”

Contact the Iowa Utilities Board for information about how to file a question or concern about the proposed Goldfinch Solar project in Washington.