Solar permitting — El Paso County, Colorado
3 known opposition groups.
Colorado Springs metro dominates; eastern agricultural fringe (Calhan, Falcon areas) has real utility-scale… Permitting: County Zoning / Special Use Permit; 150-ft setback. Track record: denial on record — One project denied near
Key driver: Colorado Springs metro dominates; eastern agricultural fringe (Calhan, Falcon areas) has real utility-scale potential and is more rural; conservative county government but not actively hostile to solar; CSU siting process for city-area adds complexity
Permitting process
Local permitting pathway
County Zoning / Special Use Permit; Colorado Springs Utilities oversight for city-area projects
Setbacks & buffers
150 ft from residences (informal county guidance)
Spacing requirements
No spacing requirements codified
Size restrictions
No formal county restrictions
Penalties & bonding
Total penalty: +5 (Denial +5)
State-level permits & approvals
County SUP; Colorado Springs Utilities siting for city areas; HB 23-1232 CEO review >50 MW; decommissioning bond
Full records for this county are part of a SitePath subscription.
State policy & grid context
State RPS & clean energy policy
100% clean by 2050, 80% by 2030 for IOUs | SB19-236 Colorado Clean Energy Plan | C.R.S. §40-2-124 & §40-2-125.5
State incentive programs
Federal ITC; Colorado Clean Energy Fund; Xcel RE procurement; CSU renewable programs
Grid & interconnection
Xcel Energy (PSCO) / Colorado Springs Utilities / WECC
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Battery storage (BESS) P1 State-Default Permitting
No confirmed standing county BESS ordinance.
Local BESS ordinances & bylaws
Tracked storage projects
County-level battery-storage status, safety requirements, and projects — each linked to a primary source.
Community opposition P1 3 tracked
Organized opposition signals on record for this county — petitions, community groups, and oppositional coverage — each linked to its primary source.
- Calhan neighbors oppose wind farm expansion, citing health concerns Wind
- Community opposition to Project Taurus data center (organized advocacy) Data center
- Petition · Open Letter to Colorado Springs Mayor, Yemi Mobolade, about Data Center Proposal Data center
SitePath maintains the most complete community-opposition dataset available, refreshed continuously from primary sources.
Subscriber intel Subscribers
Researched for this county and available with a subscription:
- 🔒Project track record
- 🔒Developer intelligence
- 🔒Community & board sentiment
- 🔒Governing board
Energy-related meetings & dockets P1
No tracked activity yet — coverage expands weekly.
State PSC dockets P1
No tracked activity yet — coverage expands weekly.
Sentiment rollup P2
No sentiment rollup yet (requires meeting transcripts to be processed).
Local news P3
No tracked activity yet — coverage expands weekly.
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