JACKSON, MI – A Jackson County township will soon be home to a “solar garden,” which will provide renewable, clean energy to the area.

Jackson-based Consumers Energy is planning to break ground in the spring of 2025 on Blackman Solar, a new 30-acre community solar array in Blackman Township. The future site, located on the corner of Blackman and County Farm roads, will be a part of Consumers Energy’s Solar Gardens program, officials said.

“Blackman Solar is a great example of a partnership with a community to develop a project that delivers reliable, clean energy as well as local tax and economic benefits,” Consumers Energy’s Vice President of Renewable Energy Development David Hicks said.

Solar Gardens is a community solar program that allows utility customers to support the development and generation of solar energy without having to own their own installations, according to Consumer Energy’s website.

The Blackman Township Board of Trustees approved a conditional use permit from Consumers Energy by a 6-1 vote for the solar project on Wednesday, Sept. 18, Blackman Township Supervisor Pete Jancek said. The township approved the permit because it fit the township’s zoning for the land, he added.

Jancek added that while he doesn’t like seeing farmland be redeveloped, he also believes Consumers Energy will take good care of it, he said. He added the energy provider will add vegetation and fencing around the project, so it will be barely visible from the road, he said.

Trustee Scott Pack voted no to the conditional use permit, Jancek said.

“With the fact that its Consumers…I’m a lot more comfortable with them doing that type of project,” Jancek said.

This will begin to generate electricity in December 2025, officials said. Blackman Solar will include nearly 5,000 solar panels and will generate up to 2.5 megawatts of renewable electricity for 2,500 future Solar Gardens customers.

“We’re grateful for the reception we’ve received from Blackman Township leaders and are excited to continue developing solar projects like this on our path to a carbon-neutral electric grid,” Hicks said.

The new community solar facility will be the fourth that Consumers Energy owns and operates, joining other Solar Gardens projects in Cadillac, Western Michigan University and Grand Valley State University, officials said.

The energy provider is also closing its final three coal-burning units next summer. The company is developing solar projects as part of its Clean Energy Plan to be carbon-neutral by 2040, officials said.

Related: Consumers Energy offers look inside its last coal-fired power plant before shutdown

Consumers Energy is Michigan’s largest energy provider, providing natural gas and electricity to 6.8 million of the state’s 10 million residents, officials said. More information can be found on Consumers Energy’s website.

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