Staging has started for the construction of a 500 acre solar farm on Hoots Chapel Road north of the West Boone Street Extension northwest of Salem. The farm will have 300,000 panels and will create 128 mega watts of power which is enough to power 20,000 homes. The Safety Manager for Alberici Flintco Renewables Robert Townsend reports they are just mobilizing right now.
“When it’s going full-speed, we’re probably going to have between 200 and 250,” Townsend said. “I’d say probably 16 to 18 months with that amount. There will be hundreds of people that come through there, but on an average we’ll have around 200 full-time employees.”
Thompson says the construction period is expected to take 16 to 18 months. Marion County Supervisor of Assessments Mark Miller says when the solar farm comes on the property tax rolls it will generate over $600,000 a year in revenue. Right now as farmland it is generating only about $20,000 a year.
