The Marshall County Council lawsuit against the Marshall County Commissioners and Tamarack regarding a proposed solar farm project in West and Union Township was a topic of discussion during the regular meeting of the Marshall County Commissioners meeting on Monday.
The litigation involves the County Council’s request to throw out the county decommissioning plan for the project based on the contention of a conflict of interest on the part of Commissioner Kevin Overmyer, who would benefit from the project financially. The suit names the Marshall County Commissioners as well as the Tamarack project itself as defendants in the suit.
Legal counsel for the Commissioners, Jim Clevenger, addressed the comments of the Council in their meeting last Thursday about not having heard a response from the Commissioners on the suit.
Clevenger told the Commissioners that Marshall County Circuit Judge Janette Surrisi had recused herself and that Marshall County Superior Court Judge Matt Sarber had also disqualified himself from hearing the case. The process has begun for a special judge that the parties agree to, to hear the case. In addition, Tamarack has also filed for a change of venue for the case.
Clevenger asked the Commissioners to consider hiring Lisa Lee, a special litigation attorney from the firm of Ice Miller, to argue the case in court.
Commissioner Stan Klotz stated that he felt the cost would be too high for the county if the case went into discovery, which is likely, and that he felt the vast majority of the public didn’t want solar power in the county in the first place.
He felt the parties involved should sit down and solve the problem away from the litigation.
Clevenger stated that while the Commissioners and Council might be able to do so, the fact that Tamarack was also named in the suit made it highly unlikely that they, as well as the local landowners whose land was involved in the project, would be willing to do so.
The suit is pending a decision from the Marshall County Board of Zoning Appeals, which will meet on Dec. 3 with the order of business to approve or deny a request for a variance of use for the project.
The Commissioners voted 2-1, with Klotz the no vote, to engage Ice Miller to represent the Commissioners in the litigation.
