Why Are So Many Solar Farms Showing Up Around the Southwest Suburbs?

Updated October 16, 2026.

If it feels like solar farms are suddenly showing up everywhere around here, you are not imagining it.

Will County has been processing commercial solar applications for years, but the pace, size and controversy surrounding some of the more recent projects has pushed the issue into a very different category.

Earlier this year, Will County Board Member Judy Ogalla said 84 solar applications had been submitted since these projects began appearing in the county in earnest. At the time, she said 57 had been approved, 10 denied and 17 withdrawn.

Then the legal landscape shifted again.

In April, a Will County judge ordered the County Board to approve six solar projects it had previously denied. A month later, the County Board approved Pride of the Prairie, the roughly 6,100-acre project spread across Green Garden, Manhattan and Wilton townships.

On October 15, the Will County Board took up three more contested applications. One was approved, one was postponed and one failed to receive approval.

So this is no longer one story about one solar farm.

It is a much bigger story about energy, farmland, private property, taxes, future development and how much say local communities actually have over what gets built around them.

First, What Do We Mean by a "Solar Farm"?

That phrase gets used for projects that are very different from one another.

A 5-megawatt community-solar facility covering a few dozen acres and a 600-megawatt utility-scale project spread across thousands of acres may both get called a solar farm, but they are not the same kind of development.

Illinois Shines, the state's solar incentive program, supports distributed generation and community solar. Beginning with the 2026-27 program year, the maximum size for community-solar projects increased from 5 MW to 10 MW.

That puts projects like the two 5 MW NL Gougar arrays into a very different scale than Pride of the Prairie or Plum Valley.

For purposes of this tracker, I am focusing on ground-mounted commercial and utility-scale solar projects. Rooftop solar on warehouses, storage buildings, homes and other existing structures is not the main focus here.

Current Solar Project Tracker

The table below is a working list of major, recent or currently active projects I could verify in public records around the southwest suburbs and surrounding Will County area.

Important: acreage is not always reported the same way. Some records describe the entire property while others describe only the portion covered by the solar special-use permit. Where that distinction is available, I note it below.

The Two Projects That Changed the Scale of the Conversation

Pride of the Prairie

Pride of the Prairie is the project that turned solar into a major regional land-use story.

The Earthrise Energy project covers approximately 6,099 acres across Green Garden, Manhattan and Wilton townships and has a planned capacity of approximately 600 MW.

The application identifies roughly 1.19 million solar modules across 96 parcels. That does not mean every inch of 6,099 acres will be covered with panels. The project is spread across separate parcels and connected areas throughout the three townships.

The approval process became a court fight. Nearby property owners sued over the hearing process, a judge temporarily stopped an earlier County Board vote, another public hearing was held, and the Planning and Zoning Commission again recommended against the project.

The Will County Board ultimately approved it 12-8 on May 21, 2026.

Earthrise currently lists a 2028 commercial-operation target. The company says it plans to use the existing grid interconnection at its Lincoln Generating Facility in Manhattan, which is one reason this location is particularly valuable for the project.

Read the full RaysGuide investigation into Pride of the Prairie

Plum Valley Solar

Plum Valley is the other giant project in the region.

Will County described the project as covering roughly 2,400 acres across Crete, Monee, Will and Washington townships. Earthrise lists the project at 260 MW with a targeted commercial-operation date of 2028.

The County Board approved Plum Valley in April 2026.

Together, Pride of the Prairie and Plum Valley make the scale of recent solar development easier to understand. These are not 40-acre community-solar sites. They are major power-generation projects spread across large sections of southern and eastern Will County.

The Smaller Projects Matter Too

The giant Earthrise projects get most of the attention, but a large share of the local solar activity consists of projects measured in tens of acres rather than thousands.

NL Gougar Solar 1 & 2 - New Lenox Township

The Gougar project consists of two co-located 5 MW solar facilities on approximately 66 acres east of Gougar Road and south of Haven Road.

The application describes roughly 22,400 panels and says the two arrays would connect separately to ComEd infrastructure along Gougar Road.

New Lenox opposed the project because the Village's long-range planning identified the area for future residential development.

The Will County Board initially denied the proposal. The developer sued, and in April 2026 a judge ordered Will County to approve Gougar along with five other previously denied solar projects.

Channahon McKinley Woods

This roughly 64-acre project sits east of McKinley Woods Road in unincorporated Will County but within Channahon's planning area.

The Village of Channahon formally opposed it, arguing that its comprehensive plan identified the property for residential development and raising concerns about compatibility, road planning, screening and other site issues.

Will County initially denied the project. It was one of the six projects ordered approved by the court in April 2026.

Black Road Solar 1 & 2 - Near Shorewood

Shorewood also opposed two solar projects proposed near its boundaries.

Black Road Solar 1 involves roughly 34 acres of solar use on an approximately 69-acre parcel near Black Road and County Line Road. Black Road Solar 2 involves roughly 24 acres of solar use on an approximately 71-acre parcel near Baltz Road and County Line Road.

Will County denied both in 2025. Both were later included in the April 2026 court order requiring the County Board to approve previously denied applications.

RPIL Solar 13 and Florence Renewables - Wilmington Area

Two more court-ordered approvals are near Wilmington.

RPIL Solar 13 proposes solar on roughly 48 acres of an 85-acre parcel along South Rivals Road.

Florence Renewables involves roughly 34 acres of a 138-acre property along Wilmington-Peotone Road east of Route 53.

Both had been denied by the County Board before being included in the April court ruling.

Two More Solar Projects With October 2026 Updates

Spencer Road Solar East - New Lenox Township

Spencer Road Solar East is a Nexamp project on South Spencer Road near the railroad tracks. It is not the same development as Cosmos Solar 1 & 2, which is also in New Lenox Township.

The county approved the Spencer Road Solar East special use and two vegetation-related variances in October 2025. On October 6, 2026, the Will County Planning and Zoning Commission granted a first 180-day extension of those two variances, moving their expiration to April 19, 2027. The variances concern mowing frequency and permissible ground-cover height.

According to the county staff explanation, the developer was awaiting an Illinois Shines program award affecting financing and construction. The extension applies to the vegetation variances, not a newly announced construction date. Construction has not been confirmed.

S Western Sun Solar - Will Township / Beecher Area

S Western Sun Solar is a previously approved 3 MW proposal along South Western Avenue, about 1.5 miles west of Beecher. The plans involve approximately 25 acres of solar panels.

At its October 1, 2026 meeting, the Will County Land Use & Development Committee voted 5–1 to recommend a first 180-day extension of the existing special-use permit, potentially extending it through March 18, 2027. This was a committee recommendation; I have not independently confirmed final County Board approval of the extension.

A September county staff memo said the applicant had not yet submitted a building permit application. The developer reported spending roughly $1 million on the project to date, including more than $550,000 in ComEd interconnection costs and fees. These figures were reported by the developer, not independently audited.

October 15 Update: Three Solar Projects, Three Different Outcomes

On October 1, the Will County Land Use & Development Committee declined to recommend approval of three controversial solar proposals. All three advanced to the full County Board on October 15, 2026, where the outcomes were very different.

One was approved. One was postponed. One failed to receive approval.

This is an initial summary of the October 15 decisions. Additional relevant details may be added as the hearing discussions and official records are reviewed.

Cosmos Solar 1 & 2 - New Lenox Township: Approved

Cosmos Solar 1 & 2 is proposed near Spencer and Delaney roads in unincorporated New Lenox Township, at 22939 Spencer Road. The application involves two co-located 5 MW community solar projects on approximately 80 acres. Arena Renewables is the developer's agent.

The Village of New Lenox opposed the request, citing a conflict with its long-range planning for future residential growth.

After the Land Use Committee declined to recommend approval on October 1, the full Will County Board considered the project on October 15. The Board split 11–11, and County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant cast the deciding vote in favor, resulting in 12–11 approval.

During the meeting, additional conditions were accepted. These include soil testing before construction and at specified intervals during the project's operating life and after decommissioning, with review by an appropriate expert at the developer's expense. The developer also agreed that construction-related pile driving would be limited to 9 a.m.–4 p.m. during that phase of the work.

When will construction begin? The developer's June 2026 application anticipated a possible 2026 start, assuming approval and issuance of the necessary permits. That was a projection, not a confirmed construction date. Additional permitting, roadway, engineering and utility-interconnection requirements may still affect the schedule. No updated start date has been confirmed.

Stillwater Solar - Manhattan Township: Postponed

Stillwater Solar is proposed at 15520 W. Baker Road in Manhattan Township, with Cultivate Power listed as the agent. The proposal includes a solar facility and a separate battery energy storage application.

Both requests failed to receive committee support on October 1. At the October 15 County Board meeting, consideration of the solar application was postponed for approximately one month by a 22–0 vote. The separate battery-storage matter was also postponed.

Neither request received final approval on October 15. The next meeting date and agenda placement should be checked when the county publishes its updated schedule.

Will Solar LLC / US Solar - Green Garden Township: Approval Motion Failed

Will Solar LLC / US Solar is proposed at 25740 S. 80th Avenue near Monee in Green Garden Township. The public-hearing notice identifies two parcels totaling approximately 40.5 deeded acres, along with requests involving vegetation-height and mowing requirements.

The Land Use Committee did not recommend approval on October 1. At the October 15 County Board meeting, an amended motion to approve the proposal failed by an 8–11 vote.

That means the project did not receive county approval at that meeting. A failed approval motion should not automatically be described as a final legal denial without checking the adopted resolution and official meeting record. The project's next procedural or legal steps remain to be confirmed.

What Happens Next?

Cosmos has cleared the county's special-use approval vote, but a confirmed construction schedule is still outstanding. Stillwater's solar and battery requests were deferred. Will Solar's approval motion failed, with its next steps not yet confirmed.

These different outcomes also show why it matters to distinguish a committee recommendation, a County Board vote, an approved special-use permit and permission to begin construction. Those are not necessarily the same thing.

Why Are So Many Solar Farms Being Proposed Now?

There is not one single reason.

Several things are happening at the same time.

Illinois Has Built a Large Incentive Market for Solar

Illinois has spent years building programs designed to add more renewable electricity to the grid.

The state's Illinois Shines program opened its 2026-27 program year with capacity to support another 1,000 MW across multiple categories.

By June 2026, the Illinois Power Agency said the program had supported more than 100,000 energized projects representing approximately 1,932 MW, with thousands of additional projects in the pipeline.

That does not mean every solar farm in this tracker is receiving the same Illinois Shines incentive. Large utility-scale projects and community-solar projects can operate under different programs and contracts.

But it does show how aggressively Illinois has been building a market for additional solar generation.

State Law Also Changed the Siting Rules

Illinois changed the county approval framework in 2023 through Public Act 102-1123, and lawmakers have continued amending the statute since then.

The current law, 55 ILCS 5/5-12020, creates statewide standards for commercial solar and limits counties from adopting rules that are more restrictive than those standards.

More importantly, the law now says a solar special-use request shall be approved when it complies with the standards in state law, a county zoning ordinance that is consistent with that law, and other applicable state and federal requirements.

It also prevents counties from simply banning commercial solar facilities from agricultural or industrial zoning districts.

That does not mean county government has no role.

Counties still process applications, conduct public hearings and can impose certain requirements allowed by state law, including setbacks, vegetative screening, drainage planning and decommissioning requirements.

But the range of reasons available for denying a qualifying project is much narrower than it was before the state framework changed.

The April Court Ruling Made That Very Real in Will County

Will County tested the limits of that authority when it denied several solar farms after local opposition.

The developers went to court.

On April 8, 2026, a Will County judge ordered the County Board to approve six previously denied projects:

• Channahon McKinley Woods
• RPIL Solar 13
• Florence Renewables
• NL Gougar Solar 1
• Black Road Solar 1
• Black Road Solar 2

The County Board then approved those applications April 16 in compliance with the court order.

Will County leaders have publicly argued that the law removes too much local control. Solar developers, by contrast, have argued that projects meeting the statewide standards are entitled to approval.

The important factual point is that the current statute contains mandatory approval language for compliant applications, and the April court ruling enforced that framework against Will County.

Why Do Villages Fight Projects That Are Not Inside Their Borders?

This is one of the more confusing parts of the local solar debate.

New Lenox did not have the final vote on NL Gougar because the property is in unincorporated New Lenox Township.

Channahon did not control the final permit for McKinley Woods because that land is outside the incorporated Village.

Shorewood did not issue the permits for Black Road 1 and 2.

But those communities still care because what happens just outside their boundaries can affect roads, future annexation, long-range residential plans and the character of land surrounding existing neighborhoods.

That is why you will sometimes see a Village Board pass a formal resolution opposing a county solar application even though the Village does not have the final vote.

Frankfort Pointe is different. That property is inside the Village of Frankfort, even though it is the small portion of Frankfort located in Cook County. Frankfort itself approved the development plans for that project.

Why Some Landowners and Communities Support Solar

The debate can get heated enough that it sounds like everyone around here is against solar.

That is not accurate.

There are several reasons property owners, developers, taxing bodies and some residents support these projects.

Private Landowners Can Receive Lease or Sale Income

Many solar projects are assembled through private agreements with participating landowners.

For a farmer or family holding a large tract of land, a long-term solar lease can provide a different income stream than continuing to farm the property.

The exact economics are private and vary by project, so I would not assume every landowner is receiving the same deal.

Solar Projects Can Add Property-Tax Revenue

Large energy projects can create significant taxable value on land that may currently be assessed primarily as farmland.

Earthrise, for example, projects that Pride of the Prairie could generate approximately $3.5 million in new tax proceeds to local taxing bodies in its first year of operation. The company projects approximately $2.3 million in first-year local tax proceeds from Plum Valley.

Those are developer projections, not guaranteed future tax bills.

Actual revenue will depend on the state solar valuation formula, project capacity, tax rates and other factors.

There Is Construction and Energy Investment

Building hundreds or thousands of acres of solar requires site work, electrical construction, fencing, roads, vegetation work and ongoing maintenance.

Earthrise says Pride of the Prairie will create nearly 1,000 jobs, including construction and long-term operations work, and says it plans to use local union labor.

Again, those employment figures come from the developer and should be read as project estimates.

Solar Produces Electricity Without Fuel Combustion at the Site

Once operating, photovoltaic panels generate electricity without burning natural gas, coal or another fuel at the solar site.

That is one of the basic environmental arguments for adding solar generation to the grid.

And in the specific case of Pride of the Prairie, Earthrise says the project can use existing transmission infrastructure at the Lincoln Generating Facility, allowing the company to add generation without starting from scratch on a completely new grid connection.

Why Do People Fight Solar Farms?

The opposition is not all coming from people who simply dislike renewable energy.

Much of the local fight is about where the projects go and how much land they occupy.

Farmland Is a Real Part of the Argument

This is especially relevant in Illinois.

USDA research examining rural solar development from 2012 through 2020 found that more than 70% of large-scale rural solar projects nationally were built on agricultural land when cropland and pasture were combined.

In the Midwest, approximately 70% of solar farms in the study were sited on cropland.

That does not mean solar is consuming most Midwestern farmland. The overall share of agricultural land affected remains small.

But it helps explain why the issue feels particularly personal in places like Green Garden, Manhattan, Wilton and Peotone, where agriculture is not just scenery. It is a major existing land use.

Future Development Can Clash With Solar Leases

This is the argument New Lenox and Channahon have made on some projects.

A piece of land can be unincorporated farmland today while a nearby municipality sees it as future housing ten or twenty years from now.

If that property instead goes into a long-term solar use, the municipality's planned growth pattern changes.

Whether that is good or bad depends on what someone thinks the land should ultimately become, but the conflict itself is real.

Neighbors May Be Looking at Panels for Decades

Visual impact is another obvious concern.

Illinois law establishes setbacks and allows counties to require certain vegetative screening between solar facilities and nonparticipating residences.

That can reduce visibility, but it does not make a solar farm disappear.

For someone who bought a rural home expecting open fields next door, the change can be substantial even when the project meets every legal setback.

What About Property Values?

This is one area where both sides tend to make claims that are more certain than the research supports.

A Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study examined more than 1,500 large-scale solar projects and 1.8 million home sales across six states.

Across the full six-state sample, homes within one-half mile of a large solar project sold for an average of about 1.5% less relative to homes two to four miles away.

But the results were not uniform. The researchers found statistically significant reductions in three of the six states studied and no statistically significant effect in the other three. They also did not find measurable effects beyond one mile in the overall sample.

Illinois was not one of the six states in that study.

So I would not tell a homeowner that a nearby solar farm will definitely lower property values. I also would not tell them there is definitive proof it never can.

The research suggests proximity, location, prior land use and project characteristics can matter.

Drainage and Soil Restoration Matter

Farm fields around here often rely on drainage tile and other systems that may not be obvious from the road.

Illinois law includes requirements addressing farmland drainage plans, and the Illinois Department of Agriculture maintains a standard Solar Agricultural Impact Mitigation Agreement, commonly called an AIMA.

The purpose is to address agricultural impacts from construction and eventual deconstruction and restoration.

That does not guarantee there will never be a drainage or construction problem. It does mean those issues are supposed to be addressed as part of the project process rather than ignored.

What Happens When the Solar Farm Is Done?

This may be the most common long-term question:

Who removes all of this in 30 or 40 years?

Large solar facilities are not supposed to be abandoned in place without a plan.

Illinois' standard Solar Agricultural Impact Mitigation Agreement includes deconstruction requirements and financial assurance intended to provide money for removal if a project is abandoned.

The standard agreement allows counties to reevaluate estimated deconstruction costs after the tenth year and every five years after that and require adjustments to the financial assurance.

If a facility is abandoned, the agreement provides a mechanism for the county to draw on that financial assurance for deconstruction.

That makes the amount, form and future adequacy of the financial security worth watching on individual projects.

Can the Panels Be Recycled?

Many of the major materials in a typical crystalline-silicon solar panel, including glass, aluminum, copper and silicon, can be recovered through recycling.

That does not mean end-of-life solar waste is a solved problem.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency notes that some discarded panels can qualify as hazardous waste depending on the materials and concentrations involved, while others do not. EPA has also been working on rules intended to improve management and recycling of end-of-life panels.

So "they are all toxic waste" is too broad.

So is "there is nothing to worry about."

The real question is whether projects have enforceable decommissioning plans, sufficient financial assurance and a viable disposal or recycling path when the equipment eventually comes out of service.

Solar and Battery Storage Are Not the Same Thing

This distinction is going to matter more as projects increasingly pair solar generation with large battery systems.

A solar farm is an electricity-generation facility.

A battery energy storage system stores electricity so it can be discharged later.

They can be proposed on the same property, but they involve different equipment and different safety questions.

The USS Talamh project on Stuenkel Road is a good local example. The solar component moved forward through the Will County process while its battery-storage request was treated separately.

Stillwater Solar on Baker Road is also seeking separate approvals for a solar facility and a battery energy storage system.

So when someone says "there is a solar project coming," it is worth checking whether a battery installation is part of the proposal or a completely separate request.

Does a Public Hearing Still Matter If State Law Says Compliant Projects Shall Be Approved?

Yes, but the answer is more complicated than it used to be.

Illinois still requires a public process for county solar applications, and residents can raise questions about whether a project actually complies with the applicable rules and conditions.

Hearings can also surface site-specific issues involving drainage, roads, screening, setbacks, protected lands and other requirements.

But public opposition by itself does not necessarily give a county legal authority to reject a project that otherwise satisfies the state framework.

That is the tension Will County has been wrestling with.

The County Board denied several projects after strong local objections. Developers sued. A judge then ordered six of those projects approved.

So the hearing is not meaningless, but neither is it the same type of open-ended land-use decision residents may be accustomed to with a subdivision, warehouse or restaurant proposal.

How to Track a Solar Project Before the Final Vote

If a project is in unincorporated Will County, the best place to start is the Will County Board meeting system and the Land Use Department.

Solar cases typically appear first through a Planning and Zoning Commission public hearing and then move through County Board committees before reaching the full County Board when required.

Look for:

• The zoning case number, usually beginning with ZC-.
• The applicant or project LLC name.
• The property address and PIN numbers.
• The requested Special Use Permit.
• Any separate battery-storage request.
• Requested setback, vegetation or mowing variances.
• Municipal resolutions of support or opposition if the site is near a village boundary.
• Decommissioning and financial-assurance documents.

See upcoming Will County Board and committee meetings

The Bottom Line

Solar around the southwest suburbs is not one simple story.

You have a 600 MW project covering roughly 6,100 acres, 5 MW community-scale projects covering a few dozen acres, solar built into a Frankfort industrial development, projects local villages support, projects local villages oppose and projects Will County was ordered by a judge to approve after initially voting them down.

There are legitimate arguments on both sides.

Solar can add renewable electricity, private investment, landowner income and tax revenue.

It can also change the long-term use of farmland, alter development plans around growing communities and put large energy facilities next to people who expected something very different when they bought their property.

And in Illinois, the biggest issue may increasingly be less about whether solar is allowed and more about where it goes, how it is designed and how much local discretion remains once a project meets the state's requirements.

This is a working page, not a claim that every solar project in the region has already been captured. I’ll continue updating it as projects move through the approval process, construction begins, proposals are withdrawn and new applications surface.

If you know of one I missed, send it to me here.

Sources & Public Records

• RaysGuide: Pride of the Prairie Solar Project Investigation
• Will County Board: April 2026 Solar Project and Court-Order Updates
• Will County Board: Meeting and Committee Schedule
• Will County Board: October 1 Land Use Committee and October 15 County Board agenda records
• Illinois General Assembly: 55 ILCS 5/5-12020 - Commercial Solar and Wind Siting
• Illinois Power Agency: 2026-27 Illinois Shines Program
• Illinois Shines: Current Program Data
• Earthrise Energy: Pride of the Prairie Project Information
• Earthrise Energy: Plum Valley Solar Project Information
• Village of New Lenox: NL Gougar Solar Application Materials
• October 6 Will County P&Z: Spencer Road Solar East variance extensions (local meeting report)
• October 1 Will County Land Use: S Western Sun permit-extension recommendation (local meeting report)
• Village of New Lenox Plan Commission: August 19, 2025 Spencer Road Solar East/West minutes
• Village of Channahon: McKinley Woods Solar Project Information
• Illinois Department of Agriculture: Agricultural Impact Mitigation Agreements
• USDA Economic Research Service: Solar Development and Agricultural Land
• Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory: Solar Projects and Nearby Home Values
• U.S. EPA: Solar Panel Recycling