BALTIMORE — The initial public hearing on a proposed solar project in Betterton has been pushed back from next week to next month, according to the Public Service Commission.
Halo Betterton LLC on April 4 filed an application for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity, which grants an applicant the authority to construct an energy-generating station in Maryland.
The developer proposes to build a 5-megawatt alternating current capacity community solar energy generating system using solar photovoltaic modules on single-axis racking with associated interconnection facilities in the town limits of Betterton.
The proposed project is to be constructed on the 30-acre parcel located at Howell Point Road and Still Pond-Betterton Road, and identified as Tax Map 100, Grid 20, Parcel 1488.
The project’s point of interconnection is proposed via Delmarva Power ‘s existing distribution circuit that runs along Howell Point Road.
The site essentially wraps around the Betterton firehouse.
According to online records of the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, Halo Betterton LLC (mailing address of Birmingham, Michigan) purchased the property in November 2024 for $500,000.
The initial public hearing scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 12, which was to be a virtual meeting, has been rescheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 9 at 7 p.m., also a virtual meeting.
The hearing will begin with a presentation by the applicant and brief statements by the Power Plant Research Program of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the Public Service Commission’s technical staff as to their respective roles in the case — in addition to taking comments from the public.
Those who would like to speak at the hearing must sign up by Sept. 8 through the PSC’s website, www.psc.state.md.us. Under “Featured Topics” on the right side of the webpage, take the following steps:
• Click on “Public Comment Hearing Signup”
• Click on Case No. 9786, and the hearing date and time of Sept. 9 at 7 p.m.
• Click “Next,” and enter your name and email address
• Click “Schedule Event”
Once the sign-up process is complete, registrants will receive a Zoom link.
Otherwise, a recording will be available on the Public Utility Law Judge Division’s YouTube Channel.
Written comments can be sent electronically or by first-class mail by Dec. 8.
Comments submitted electronically must be submitted through the Public Service Commission’s public comment dropbox, which can be accessed through the PSC’s website at www.psc.state.md.us.
Instructions for logging into the public comment dropbox are located under the “Tools” section of the website under the “Make a Public Comment” tab, which cane be accessed here: https://www.psc.state.md.us/make-a-public-comment/.
Commenters using the public comment dropbox are required to complete a one-time registration.
All comments must include a reference to Case No. 9786.
Comments sent by mail should be addressed to: Jamie Bergin, Chief Clerk, Maryland Public Service Commission, William Donald Schaefer Tower, 6 St. Paul St., 16th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202. Only one copy is required.
So that they are noted in the proper case file, all comments should reference Case No. 9786.
The application is available for public inspection or copying at the Betterton town hall, 100 Main St.
Additionally, the application and other pleadings in this matter may be viewed or downloaded from the electronic docket file (Case No. 9786) available through the Public Service Commission’s website, www.psc.state.md.us.