Public Input Sought for Proposed 2.25 MW Solar Facility in Somerset County

A proposed community solar project is moving into its public comment phase, and according to the Maryland Public Service Commission, neighbors across Somerset County now have a clear window to weigh in on what gets built next door. The applicant, Old Princess Anne Community Energy Initiative, LLC, is seeking approval for a 2.250 MW facility on 15.30 acres along Old Princess Anne Road, with energy earmarked for subscribers inside Delmarva Power and Light's local service territory. If you've been wondering how decisions like this actually reach you, this is the moment the process opens its doors.

What's on the Table

The developer filed its application back in October 2025 for what regulators call a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity, the formal green light to construct an energy generating station in our state. The project would sit on roughly half of a larger 29.46-acre parcel at 10410 Old Princess Anne Road, carving out 15.30 acres for the solar array itself. Public Utility Law Judge Kyle Kushner will preside over the case, and at the hearing you'll hear directly from the applicants, the Power Plant Research Program at the Department of Natural Resources, and the Commission's Technical Staff about their respective roles and recommendations.

How to Show Up and Be Heard

The Commission has set a public hearing for Monday, August 31, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. inside the Princess Anne Library at 11767 Beechwood Street, Princess Anne. If you'd rather join from home, you can register through the "File a Public Comment" page on the Commission's website by August 27, 2026, and you'll get a Zoom link by email once you're signed up. A recording will also be posted afterward on the Public Utility Law Judge Division's YouTube channel, which is genuinely helpful if you're juggling work, school pickup, or a long commute.

If showing up live feels like too much, written comments carry just as much weight in the official record. You can submit them electronically through the Commission's online portal, or send them by mail to Jamie Bergin, Chief Clerk, Maryland Public Service Commission, William Donald Schaefer Tower, 6 St. Paul Street, 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202. Either way, make sure your comment references Case No. 9822 so it lands in the right file, and you have until September 30, 2026 to get it in. If you want to read the full application before you write a word, a copy is sitting at the Somerset County Department of Planning and Zoning, 11916 Somerset Avenue, Room #211, in Princess Anne.

Why This Matters for Our Block

Community solar projects don't just change skylines, they shape property values, drainage patterns, viewsheds, and the long-term feel of the roads we drive every day. We've seen enough large developments go in without a peep from the neighborhoods they'll affect, and the regret that follows is the same regret every time. Reading the application, signing up for the hearing, or even writing a two-paragraph letter takes a small slice of an evening, but it's the slice that keeps our planning genuinely ours instead of something handed to us after the fact.