On the agenda: Pekin Minutes — Data Center (Oct 6)

DRAFT COPY - SUBJECT TO COMMITTEE APPROVAL
BOARD:

TAZEWELL COUNTY

COMMITTEE:

LAND USE

DATE/TIME:

Tuesday, June 9, 2026, at 5:00 p.m.

PRESENT:

Chairman K. Russell Crawford, Vice Chairman Jon Hopkins, Mark Goddard, Eric
Stahl, Eric Schmidgall, and Joe Woodrow.

ABSENT:

Jay Hall and Greg Longfellow

STAFF PRESENT:

Jaclynn Workman, Community Development Administrator; Melissa Kreiter, Chief
Deputy Administrator; and Matt Drake, Assistant States Attorney

OTHERS PRESENT:

County Board Member Eugene Glueck and Elton Rocke

CALL TO ORDER:

Chairman Crawford called the meeting to Order at 5:06 p.m. withholding any action
items until a quorum has been met.

PUBLIC COMMENT:

None

MINUTES:

Moved by Stahl, seconded by Hopkins to approve the May 12, 2026 Minutes. On
voice vote, motion declared carried.

DISCUSSION:
Proposed Amendment 76
Renewable Energy
Ordinance

Administrator Workman stated she had been working on the Renewable Energy
Ordinance which would combine Commercial Solar, Wind Farm and Energy
Storage Systems (previously referred to at BESS Battery Energy Storage
Systems) into one ordinance due to the similar regulations implemented by the
State of Illinois. Ms. Workman said that direct use solar and small wind energy
systems will be moved to the Zoning Code. Ms. Workman added she received
feedback from Members Hopkins and Schmidgall as well as Matt Drake. Ms.
Workman stated Data Centers are not a part of this proposed ordinance and will
be a separate ordinance that would be developed later.
Chairman Crawford stated that Al Green, Logan County Zoning Administrator had
written an ordinance on Data Centers and he would like him to present it to the
Land Use committee.
Administrator Workman stated that Mr. Green was not ready to share the draft
ordinance and wants to wait until after the Logan County Board has approved
such. Ms. Workman then reviewed the questions and proposed modifications of
Members Hopkins and Schmidgall. Ms. Workman said any energy system
directly associated with a commercial solar or wind would be considered accessory
and not constitute a separate use.
Assistant States Attorney Drake stated he would clarify if an expansion would be
needed for any existing project that seeks to add an Energy Storage System to
their project that would have been approved prior to state law.
County Board Member Eugene Glueck questioned whether additional fees could
be assessed.

Administrator Workman stated due to assessment requirements, any solar or wind
facility must receive a new PIN. Ms. Workman is not aware if the parcels will
automatically be combined following the decommission of the facility but would
check with the Assessment office. Additionally, Ms. Workman added that Road
Use Agreements (RUA) are for guidance and are not a requirement noting some
road districts have allowed projects without having one. Ms. Workman stated that
a RUA could address items such as improving roads pre-construction and
repairing any road post construction. Ms. Workman said although we may assist
in the communications, any enforcement would be up to the road district
authorities. Ms. Workman added that she is working to have any approved
Special Use sites recorded in the Recorder of Deeds office but there are details
that still need to be worked out regarding recording or tracking any agreements or
waivers that an adjoining neighbor may have given.
Member Woodrow asked if there was a process for continued non-compliance of
a project if repairs are not made or regulations not met, wherein Ms. Workman
stated that would be addressed in the complaint section and Emergency Response
Plan (ERP). Ms. Workman further stated that she had met with local fire chiefs to
try and build a relationship for better communication on these projects.
Assistant States Attorney Drake stated that a lot of specific language in the draft
ordinance came from the states’ AIMA agreement and they must keep language
similar but can clean it up or make clarifications to that language. Mr. Drake said
certain complaints may require a full/partial stop of operations and if not addressed
or repaired then the project could be deemed inactive.
Administrator Workman stated the insurance numbers reflect our insurance
providers suggestions as well as the requirement for the county to be named as
an additional insureds on any policy. Ms. Workman also said that the county
would need a system to track Certificates of Insurance and their expirations to
ensure that coverage does not lapse.
County Board Member Glueck stated that insurance claims are uncharted territory
for solar facilities and the state is just now beginning to see several facilities
damaged in recent tornadic events.
Chairman Crawford stated our insurance representative had been a long time
county board member and that he would trust his judgement and opinions
regarding same.
Administrator Workman stated that every time the Decommissioning Plan was
reviewed for a project, the insurance limits would also be reviewed.
Member Schmidgall stated that adjacent landowners should be listed as additional
insureds as they may experience significant losses following a storm. Mr.
Schmidgall said that the larger the project size, the larger the insurance limits
should be. Mr. Schmidgall also noted concern regarding the language for
drainage tiles, as the effects would impact more properties than just where the site
is located.
Chairman Crawford stated that the county must be cautious in being too excessive
with restrictions or the state may step in and limit the county abilities even further.

Member Hopkins suggested a tier per megawatt when calculating insurance
coverage needs. Mr. Hopkins also questioned if the county could require 100%
of the decommissioning bond to be provided if a project were to be sold, however
Assistant States Attorney Drake did not believe that could be required.
Member Stahl stated that petitioning companies do not have to provide any
equipment for fire and rescue, but showing good faith by doing so would be similar
to any of the “good neighbor agreements” that developers enter into.
Administrator Workman stated that the county was looking into a social media
page to allow public participation, input for initiating complaints.
Assistant States Attorney Drake stated that there were a few rulings in the 3rd
District Appellate Court finding that the LaSalle Factors could not be considered
when determining a special use request. Mr. Drake added that there was not a
ruling in our district, the 4th District, that found a county could consider the LaSalle
factors. Mr. Drake stated that we are in the 4th District and we should follow their
guidance, therefore the factors were added back into the draft ordinance. Mr.
Drake added that it will now be up to the legislature or state Supreme Court to
render a decision on the matter now that there is a split decision. Mr. Drake noted
that the language regarding drainage tiles came from the AIMA, albeit poorly
worded language.
Administrator Workman stated fees for applications were determined by the State.
Ms. Workman explained wording regarding specific inspection requirements and
the necessity to provide the county with inspection reports. Ms. Workman noted
that some inspectors were licensed engineers and she and Mr. Drake would further
discuss specific language. Ms. Workman added that vegetative screening was
not a requirement but was encouraged; setbacks were regulated by the state;
annual inspection requirements were listed in the operation and maintenance
section; decommissioning and fees were state regulations. Ms. Workman stated
there was no AIMA requirement for (battery) energy storage systems. Also,
transmission line placement was beyond our area of expertise but she would
investigate setback regulations.
Chairman Crawford stated he would like to pause discussions to allow Ms.
Workman to make changes discussed thus far and would like to meet again on
June 16, 2026 following other committee meetings to review again. Mr. Crawford
said proposed Amendment 77 would be discussed at that time.
NEXT MEETING:

The next meeting of the Land Use Committee will be held on Tuesday, June 16,
2026 immediately following Property, Finance and Human Resources
Committees.

RECESS:

There being no further business, the meeting recessed at 7:41p.m.
Jaclynn Workman, Secretary
(Transcribed by Melissa Kreiter, Chief Deputy)

DRAFT COPY - SUBJECT TO COMMITTEE APPROVAL
BOARD:

TAZEWELL COUNTY

COMMITTEE:

LAND USE

DATE/TIME:

Tuesday, June 16, 2026, immediately following Property, Finance and Human
Resources

PRESENT:

Chairman K. Russell Crawford, Vice Chairman Jon Hopkins , Eric Stahl, Eric
Schmidgall, and Joe Woodrow.

ABSENT:

Mark Goddard, Jay Hall and Greg Longfellow

STAFF PRESENT:

Jaclynn Workman, Community Development Administrator; Melissa Kreiter, Chief
Deputy Administrator; and Matt Drake, Assistant States Attorney

OTHERS PRESENT:

County Board Member Eugene Glueck

CALL TO ORDER:

Chairman Crawford called the meeting to Order at 4:34 p.m.

PUBLIC COMMENT:

None

DISCUSSION:
Proposed Amendment 76
Renewable Energy
Ordinance

Administrator Workman stated she made the changes as discussed in June. Ms.
Workman said Tim Nuehauser, the county insurance representative agreed with
incremental increases for coverages as the size of projects increased, noting he
was not certain what a proper increase would be given the newness of these types
of developments.
Chairman Crawford stated Mr. Neuhauser was a subject matter expert and other
counties did not require specific insurance limits. Mr. Crawford had a video shown
of tornado damage in the Washburn area. Mr. Crawford said adding insurance
language was a gutsy move, however citizen safety and protection must be a high
priority and consideration given in our ordinance. Mr. Crawford added that Brad
Long, who has appeared before the committee prior should be asked to review the
insurance language as well. Mr. Crawford stated that he was okay with being the
leader in creating regulations but reminded the committee that it should not be so
restrictive that it draws attention from the state.
Administrator Workman stated the Washburn tornado was not the first time a solar
farm had been affected by a tornado, but there was not good data available to
know how clean-up efforts were handled or estimated costs in damages.
Member Schmidgall stated that crops cannot be grown on farmland until all glass
has been removed from a site. Mr. Schmidgall said children cannot play in yards,
ponds were ruined and damage greatly impacted nearby residents. Mr.
Schmidgall added that soil samples of adjoining properties should be a
requirement to establish a baseline should a tornado or other disaster occur. Mr.
Schmidgall stated interference from wind farms should be any or moderate and
not severe as any interference could cause GPS to not function, which would be
detrimental to farmers. Mr. Schmidgall added insurance needed to be reevaluated every 5 years.
Member Woodrow stated adjacent landowners needed to be named as an insured

as a requirement due to the farm ground being non-useable following a tornadic
event. Mr. Woodrow said that GPS interference could be detrimental. Mr.
Woodrow questioned the life expectancy of energy storage systems and
questioned if the state regulated the time.
Member Hopkins questioned where to draw the line on what neighboring
properties should be considered for insurance coverage in the event of a storm.
Mr. Hopkins also questioned how the determination would be made on whether
interference was pre-existing and who gauges what is considered as interference.
Mr. Hopkins stated he spoke with a realtor regarding conducting title searches for
properties that may have signed a good neighbor agreement and was investigating
if there was a good procedure for knowing what properties have waived regulation
requirements. Mr. Hopkins said updating the facility managers needed to be
made a requirement and questioned whether any computer programs could be
used to help keep track of issues.
Administrator Workman stated soil borings on a participating property are done
prior to construction per the AIMA. Ms. Workman said she could add language
about adjacent properties having their soils sampled as well, however the adjacent
owners must be willing to have their soils sampled and she questioned if that
agreement would constitute them being a participating property. Ms. Workman
added that including the adjacent landowners as an insured could be a
recommendation as she was unsure if this could be a requirement per state law.
Ms. Workman added that fire districts have in the past been able to secure
equipment or funding for equipment and that this is something we mention to any
potential developer. Ms. Workman questioned how to gauge interference and
what language would the committee suggest. Ms. Workman stated she would
work with the Recorder of Deeds on how to be notified when a lease agreement
transferred parties and noted that this would be procedural and did not need to be
in the proposed ordinance.
Following discussion, it was the consensus of the committee to direct the
Community Development Administrator to send the proposed Amendment 76 to
the July 7, 2026 ZBA Public Hearing.
Proposed Amendment 77
Zoning Code

Administrator Workman presented proposed Amendment 77 to the committee. Ms.
Workman stated this amendment was to transfer already adopted language
regarding direct use solar and small wind turbine regulations into the Zoning Code,
as they will not be a part of the new Renewable Energy Ordinance. Ms. Workman
stated there were some additional definitions added and a few areas where
language was cleaned up.
Following discussion, it was the consensus of the committee to direct the
Community Development Administrator to send the proposed Amendment 77 to
the July 7, 2026 ZBA Public Hearing.

STAFF REPORT:

Administrator Workman presented the Committee a Staff Report detailing
revenues, expenses and other office related activity for the month and year to date.
This item was for discussion purposes only and no action was taken.

NEXT MEETING:

The next meeting of the Land Use Committee will be held on Tuesday, July 14,
2026 at 5:00 p.m.

RECESS:

There being no further business, the meeting recessed at 5:56 p.m.

Jaclynn Workman, Secretary
(Transcribed by Melissa Kreiter, Chief Deputy)