Town of Normal Zoning Board of Appeals met Feb. 19.
Here are the minutes provided by the board:
Members Present:
Ms. Brand, Mr. Haywood, Mr. Coates, Mr. Queen, Mr. Anderson, Mr. Moyer
Members Absent:
Mr. Palmgren
Others Present:
Planner I Tessa Ferraro, Inspections and Planning Office Associate Hannah Neal, Deputy Corporation Council Steven Simmons
Call to Order:
Mr. Anderson noted that a quorum was present and called the meeting to order at 5:00 PM. Approval of Minutes:
Ms. Brand moved to approve the minutes from January 15, 2026, and Mr. Moyer seconded.
Public Hearing:
a. 26-2-2-V: Ground-mount solar installation that exceeds the height and size requirements, 1423 N Linden
Ms. Ferraro reviewed the Staff report. The home at 1423 N Linden was built in 1976 and is part of an R-1A zoning district. The owner would like to install ground mounted solar panels to the rear of the property. Ground mounted solar panels are permitted in this zoning district, but there are some limitations. Per code the panels can be no more than 100 square feet in size and no more than 4 feet in height at the tallest point. The proposed panels would be 7.8’ high and 423 square feet. Staff would recommend denying the proposal, as it does not meet the three standards. An array of the proposed size and height could be detrimental to the surrounding neighbors, particularly the ones to the west. Staff also believes that denying the application at the proposed height and size would not prevent the property owner from obtaining a reasonable return on the property. The property is unique in that it is larger than a typical R-1A lot, but that would not necessitate the panels being larger than code requires.
Mr. Anderson opened the public portion of the meeting.
Curt Clapier of 6610 Charles street was sworn in and stated that he was the Vice President of Sales for Tron Solar. Carrie Sears of 117 High Point, an employee of Tron Solar and Bruce O’Brian of 1423 N Linden were also sworn in.
Mr. Clapier said the reason the panels were designed the way they were is because of high utility costs in Illinois. The home on the lot can’t have roof mounted solar panels as the roof is too shaded. The size of the panels is dictated by how much power is needed to offset the owner’s electrical use. He proposed that they change the angle of the panels to reduce the height. He asked if a variance could be considered, as the only alternative to Ameren is solar. He also stated that the homeowner was flexible on where the panels would be placed in the yard. They could also split the system up into two arrays. It is important for the applicant to have a backup source of power given his current living situation. If they were to reduce the number of panels, it would only produce a fraction of what the homeowner would need.
Mr. Coats asked Mr. Clapier if they had spoken to the neighbors about their feelings on the solar panels.
Mr. Clapier said no, but they would be willing to.
Mr. Coates asked if they had considered moving the panels closer to the house.
Mr. Clapier said there was flexibility on where the panels could go, they would just need to avoid shaded areas. They have about 50 feet of wiggle room.
Mr. Haywood asked if the square footage would be the same if the panels were to be put on the roof.
Mr. Clapier said it would, but the roof was in the shade so the panels would not get enough sunlight. He added that the current proposal would be able to provide 110% of the home’s electrical needs. Ms. Sears confirmed Mr. Clapier’s comment.
Mr. Haywood asked what the difference would be in changing the angle of the structure vs lowering the structure.
Mr. Clapier said typically a ground mount starts 3 feet off the ground and then angle the panels to 25 degrees. At that angle the highest point of the panel is about 7.8 feet tall. He would need to confirm with his engineers, but tilting the ground mount slightly would reduce the highest point without sacrificing too much of the production.
Ms. Sears asked if it would be possible to do 2 rows of panels instead of 4 rows.
Mr. Clapier said that would help with the overall height, but it would not reduce the square footage.
Mr. Haywood asked if there would still be plenty of room for the rear yard setback and Mr. Clapier said yes.
Mr. Anderson asked if the size directly correlated with the output of energy.
Mr. Clapier said the math isn’t always that simple, but in this case, there would be a significant loss of production if there was less square footage.
Mr. Queen asked for clarification on the height of the Solar panels vs the height of the nearby fencing.
Ms. Ferraro stated that fence heights can only go up to 6 feet in R-1A zoning and the height of the panels would exceed that.
Mr. O’Brian said that he had spoken to the neighbors on the north and south ends of his property and they had no issues with the structure. He had not yet spoken to the neighbors to the west.
Mr. Anderson asked what would happen if the panels were not approved and if it would be possible for the panels to be split into 4 rows of 100 square feet each.
Ms. Ferraro said that the code only allows 100 square feet total.
Mr. Anderson asked if any neighbors had responded to the notice that Staff sent out, and Ms. Ferraro said no.
There was some discussion on possible outcomes of tabling the project to the following month vs rejecting the proposal, which would mean it could not be presented to the Zoning Board for another year.
Mr. Clapier worried that if it were to be postponed for a year, the incentives for solar may not be the same in the future.
Zoning Board of Appeals 4 February 19, 2026
Ms. Brand asked what a good compromise would be that could appease Staff and work for the homeowner.
Mr. Clapier said they would be willing to consider a compromise but emphasized that the current proposal was just enough to completely cover the homeowner’s power, anything less would not.
Ms. Brand asked if homes that had roof mounted panels had a battery backup, and Mr. Clapier said yes.
Mr. Queen said he would like to see the proposal postponed to next month’s meeting, as he felt there were valid reasons for disagreeing with the Staff recommendation, and would like the contractor to come back with more information. He added that he was overall in favor of the project and would like to find a way to accommodate. He asked if there could be some changes made that would make the proposal more palatable.
Mr. Coates commented that he was in favor of granting approval of the panels due to the size of the yard. If the panels were to be angled below the fence line and placed further east, they should be more harmonious with the neighborhood. Breaking the panels up should also be helpful. He felt the project to be unique and stated that if the neighbors to the north had no issues, then it should be acceptable. He added that his only concern would be getting input from the other neighbors.
Mr. Queen said that he agreed with Mr. Coates comments. He felt that with some tweaking the project could work.
Mr. Anderson said that generally he does not like telling homeowners no, but the proposal is quite a bit off from what code requires. Concerning the neighbors he agreed it would be nice to have more information. His main issue is with the number of panels being used.
Ms. Brand asked to see the full dimensions of the panels and Mr. Clapier said they would be 28.5 feet in width and 15 feet in length. He clarified that the 15 feet would be if the panels were lying flat on the ground. After mounting and angling them they would shorter in length at 7 feet.
Mr. Haywood said that being able to lower the panels to the fence level was only addressing the height issue but doesn’t address the issue with the square footage.
Mr. Coates said he would be more concerned about the square footage if the yard were smaller, but the size of the yard should be able to accommodate the square footage of the panels.
Mr. Moyer asked if there was a limit to square footage on roof mounted solar. Ms. Ferraro said roof mounted panels could not extend beyond the roof’s footprint. Ms. Sears asked how code determined the standard for 100 square feet.
Ms. Ferraro said that it was her understanding that the small square footage allowance was to ensure that the solar array wouldn’t take away from the R-1A aesthetic and residential nature.
Mr. Coates asked if the neighbor to the north had a fence.
The homeowner said no, the only fence was to the west of his property.
Mr. Anderson reiterated that the size of the panels was much larger than code would allow. He added that he would be fine tabling the project but wanted to be respectful of everyone’s time.
Ms. Brand asked how many commissioners would be in favor if of the height variance if the contractor would be able to angle it to 6 feet.
Mr. Clapier said he could definitely if the panels were kept together and could get them even lower if they split the panels into rows.
Mr. Queen said he was happy with lowering the panels and moving them closer to the house.
At this time there was discussion on how to amend the Staff finding and recommendations to reflect the agreed upon changes.
Mr. Coates asked if the previously mentioned relocation of the panels in the yard would work for the homeowner.
The homeowner said yes, as long as the trees aren’t an issue then it should be fine.
Mr. Clapier cautioned that moving the panels closer to the house may create more visability for the neighbor to the west.
With this in mind Mr. Queen made a motion to amend the findings and recommendations proposed by staff, noting that the only condition is that the panels could be no more than 6 feet in height, and Mr. Coates seconded.
Mr. Anderson called for a vote to amend the findings.
All in favor: Mr. Moyer, Mr. Coates, Mr. Haywood, Mr. Queen, Ms. Brand Opposed: Mr. Anderson
Mr. Queen moved to adopt the amended findings and decisions.
All in favor: Mr. Moyer, Mr. Coates, Mr. Haywood, Mr. Queen, Ms. Brand Opposed: Mr. Anderson
The motion carried.
With no further business, Ms. Brand moved to adjourn the meeting and Mr. Queen seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 6:07 PM.
https://www.normalil.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/5545
