The Ohio Power Siting Board on Thursday, March 19 denied construction of the Crossroads Solar Grazing Center, pulling the plug on a proposed 94-megawatt agrivoltaic project in Morrow County. In its written opinion, the board cited “consistent and substantial opposition to the project by the local population and as expressed through the local governmental entities.” The ruling stops a plan its backers said would blend solar panels and sheep grazing across roughly 611 acres at an estimated cost of $98 million.
Board cites local opposition
According to WOSU Public Media, the board’s order leaned heavily on resolutions from township and county officials who lined up against the project. The opinion also made a point of saying that a batch of disputed public comments was not used in deciding whether to grant or deny the application.
Fake comments cloud the record
As reported by Canary Media, reviewers and the developer flagged at least 34 public comments in the OPSB docket that appeared to use fake names or list incorrect residency, with some tied to email addresses that bounced. The developer told regulators that after tossing out the questionable filings, a large share of the remaining commenters were actually in favor of Crossroads.
What the project would have looked like
Crossroads Solar Grazing Center, from developer Open Road Renewables, was pitched as a dual-use facility pairing a 94-megawatt solar array with commercial sheep grazing and outreach to nearby farmers. Project materials from the company show proposed panel layouts, planned grazing partnerships, and community meetings in the Cardington area aimed at explaining how solar and agriculture could share the same ground.
How local votes shifted the staff recommendation
Public filings show that by late November, Morrow County and two of the three townships in the project area had formally come out against Crossroads. A late change of position by a Cardington Township trustee then prompted OPSB staff to reverse an earlier recommendation, Canary Media reported. Staff had recommended approval in a December 5 report before that reversal, and testimony in January pointed to the township resolutions as a key reason for the change in stance.
Environmental groups push back
The Ohio Environmental Council, which formally intervened in the case, blasted the ruling as troubling. In a statement to WOSU Public Media, Nolan Rutschilling, the group’s managing director of energy policy, said OEC stepped in “to ensure that decisions are based on facts, fairness, and the long-term interests of Ohioans” and warned that Ohio will need more clean energy as power demand climbs.
Legal stakes and precedent
The decision lands while the Ohio Supreme Court is weighing multiple siting appeals that test whether local opposition alone can sink large energy projects. The court’s announcements list several OPSB-related cases and interventions, including the Circleville Solar matter, according to the Ohio Supreme Court's case announcements. How the justices interpret the statutory “public interest” standard in those disputes is expected to influence future siting calls across the state.
What comes next
The Crossroads denial is the latest setback for utility-scale solar in parts of Ohio where counties and townships have moved to clamp down on new projects, Ideastream Public Media reported. Developers and clean-energy advocates can still seek legal or administrative relief, and previous denials have often led to appeals or other litigation.
Supporters had framed Crossroads as roughly a $98 million investment that could bring new tax revenue and grazing jobs, while opponents voiced worries about losing farmland and altering the county’s rural character. For now, under the OPSB order, the Crossroads solar fields and sheep-grazing plan are not moving forward in Morrow County.
