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12 <br />STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA BEFORE THE BOARD OF <br />COMMISSIONERS AND PLANNING <br />BOARD <br />COUNTY OF ORANGE <br />IN RE: Stout Farm, LLC, Solar Array — Public Utility <br />Orange County PINs: 9844 -06 -5971 and 9844 -17 -2687 <br />Address: SR 1311, Mebane, North Carolina <br />STATEMENT OF JUSTIFICATION IN SUPPORT OF THE <br />SPECIAL USE PERMIT APPLICATION <br />NOW COMES THE PETITIONER, by and through counsel of record, and respectfully <br />requests approval of their application for a special use permit to operate a solar array — <br />public utility. In support of this request, Petitioner provides the following information: <br />I. Introduction <br />Stout Farm, LLC proposes to construct a solar array — public utility on 52.66± acres of <br />land owned by David Stout, Sr. and Stephen Stout. The property is located just west of <br />the Efland community off US 70W, with access from Redman Crossing Road onto SR <br />1311. This short section of state road provides access to the Stout properties and adjacent <br />Redmanrhino property. <br />The property is currently zoned Residential -1 (R -1) within the Upper Eno Protected <br />Watershed Overlay District. Adjacent properties are developed as a single- family home, <br />Duke Energy substation, and warehouse /light industrial. The site is bordered by the I- <br />40/I -85 Highway corridor to the south and on the north (on the other side of SR 1311) by <br />the Norfolk Southern/North Carolina Railroad. Adjacent properties are also zoned R -1 <br />and Economic Development Buckhorn Higher Intensity (EDB -2). The site on the Future <br />Land Use Plan is designated as Commercial - Industrial Transition. <br />An overarching theme of the Orange County Comprehensive Plan is a desire to create a <br />sustainable future. In Chapter 1, the Plan Overview, the Orange County Comprehensive <br />Plan states that "...we must seek to develop a community that meets the needs of the <br />present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their <br />needs." This solar array — public utility fulfills the County's goal to reduce dependence <br />on fossil fuels and nuclear power and turn to a sustainable form of energy generation. <br />The solar array — public utility will contain rows of Photovoltaic (PV) cells mounted on <br />posts set in the ground by hand. The posts are set individually in an effort to minimize <br />the amount of grading on site. These rows of PV cells are referred to as "solar arrays." <br />The solar arrays will be fixed in place facing south in order to receive the maximum <br />amount of solar energy. This configuration contains no moving parts. The power <br />generated from the solar array — public utility will be sold to Duke Power Company for <br />