Dubois County links long-range plan to solar and zoning decisions

Dubois County’s next major land-use decisions were no longer sitting in the background. County officials have tied the comprehensive plan directly to zoning questions, and that means where future solar farms, battery storage facilities and other large projects can go may depend on the policy framework being built now.

The county hired American StructurePoint to help write that framework, and senior planner and project manager Philip Roth has been steering the work. At a commissioners meeting, Roth presented the firm’s vision2action approach for building a comprehensive plan for Dubois County, a document county records say will serve as the guiding policy for five years and guide growth, development and investments over the next 8 to 10 years.

That plan matters because Indiana law requires it to cover objectives for future development, land-use policy, and policy for public ways, public places, public lands, public structures and public utilities. In practical terms, that reaches far beyond a planning binder. It can influence how Jasper, Huntingburg, Ferdinand, Holland and the county’s unincorporated areas handle property values, farmland preservation, utility development and the county’s leverage when outside developers propose large projects.

The county has already started collecting public input. Residents, workers and other stakeholders were asked to complete an anonymous 8-to-10-minute survey as part of the planning process. Commissioners first heard presentations from three planning firms on May 5, 2025, then later received 11 proposals before moving toward American StructurePoint as the preferred consultant.

The immediate pressure point has been Crossvine Solar and its battery energy storage systems south of Huntingburg and west of the Huntingburg Airport. In October 2025, county officials said they were getting numerous questions about the project. AES told county officials it was preparing a stakeholder-engagement program that included a dedicated website and an open house, likely set for November 13, 2025. The company also said it had initially mailed notices only to property owners within a 0.25-mile radius of the geotechnical investigation area.

County staff said the Crossvine project included battery systems next to CenterPoint’s proposed substation off Holland Road Northeast. AES said the battery systems would be designed and installed to National Fire Protection Association standards, that the project had undergone a hazard mitigation analysis, and that first-responder training would be coordinated before the systems became operational.

By December 2025, residents were pressing commissioners to consider a moratorium on future large solar and battery projects, citing safety, environmental and tax concerns. County officials said their authority was limited without countywide planning, which is why the comprehensive plan and zoning reform have become linked policy tracks. Dubois Strong’s partnership with zoning consultant IncCodes added another sign that the county is trying to update both the long-range plan and the rules that follow from it.