Council OKs formal letter demanding compliance
Cauble: Solar farm construction traffic taking its toll on county roads
8:34 p.m. March 16, 2026
Highway Department Superintendent Shannon Cauble, right, shared images of road conditions around the solar farm build during her discussion with the Metro Council.
DUANE CROSS
MCO Publisher•Editor
The Metro Council on Monday moved toward possible action related to the Silicon Ranch solar project after Highway Department Superintendent Shannon Cauble said construction traffic has left county roads in the Cumberland Springs area damaged, hazardous, and out of compliance with the approved site plan.
The council voted at its March 16 meeting to direct County Attorney Bill Rieder to send a formal letter demanding immediate compliance and warning that further action could follow.
Cauble told council members that the county continues to deal with damaged roads, mud on public roads, unapproved entrances, drainage problems, and potential impacts on nearby waterways. She said some of the worst areas now pose serious public safety concerns.
“We may be looking at another public safety situation,” Cauble said. “Some of these places are going to be so bad that you just can’t safely drive.”
Road Damage and Site-Plan Concerns
She said mud from the construction area has been a persistent problem on Cumberland Springs-area roads used by trucks entering and leaving the site.
“The mud has been a huge issue,” Cauble said. “The mud has frozen in the road, and they cracked the road, so the road is cracked completely. The road is really destroyed.”
Cauble said the project’s approved site plan included 11 entrances on county roads, but she has documented about 29 in use. Even some approved entrances, she said, are not in the correct locations.
“They have been in non-compliance with our final site plan since the day that they started this project,” she said.
She said unapproved entrances have worsened the damage by allowing construction traffic to enter and exit in ways not authorized under the site plan. In some cases, she said, barricades meant to block those entrances were still being used like gates.
Cauble said some stretches have deteriorated to the point of posing a risk to drivers. In one area near the old lake, she said, the road has dropped by about 12 inches, suggesting deeper structural problems with the road base and bank, not just pavement failure.
Asked whether the roads are currently safe for the public, Cauble said she could not guarantee motorists would avoid vehicle damage.
“I would not guarantee that there won’t be damage to your car at 30 miles an hour,” she said.
Drainage and Creek Issues
Beyond the road issues, Cauble said the county is also looking into runoff, erosion and sediment concerns near Hurricane Creek and around a subdivision where residents have reported water flowing over the road from a ditch connected to one of the project’s detention ponds.
“It’s never done that to my knowledge and to the residents’ knowledge that have contacted me about it,” she said.
Possible Legal Options
Council members questioned what options the county has if the problems are not corrected, including whether officials could pursue a stop-work order, revoke permits, or close roads if conditions continue to worsen.
Rieder said he needs more legal research before advising the council on the full extent of those options, particularly where environmental and waterway rules may overlap with state and federal law.
Still, he said the county is not limited to the road agreement already in place with the company.
“The agreement is not exclusive,” Rieder said, explaining that the 2024 agreement between Moore County and Silicon Ranch states the county retains its common-law and statutory rights and may have additional legal avenues to force repairs or pursue action.
Council Directs Formal Letter
Cauble said she has repeatedly asked project representatives to address specific damaged areas, but those requests have not produced results.
“They’re sort of stonewalling,” she said. “They want me to tell them exactly what place to fix and how to fix it, and then when I tell them, they just keep moving the goal post.”
District 3 Council member Dexter Golden, who also chairs the Planning and Zoning Commission, noted that representatives from Silicon Ranch and its contractor, LPL Solar, did not attend Monday’s meeting, despite what one member said was an invitation to appear and provide an update.
By the end of the discussion, the council approved a motion directing Rieder to send a formal letter demanding immediate compliance and outlining possible further action.
Council members said additional action could follow after Rieder completes his legal review and the county receives a response.
Shane Taylor made the motion, which Sunny Rae Moorehead seconded. The measure passed 10-1, with Peggy Sue Blackburn, Robert Bracewell, Douglas Carson, Amy Cashion, Bradley Dye, Dexter Golden, Greg Guinn, Jimmy Hammond, Moorehead, and Taylor voting in favor. Arvis Bobo cast the lone dissenting vote.
Gerald Burnett, Marty Cashion, Houston Lindsey, and John Taylor were absent.
Fire Protection
Mayor Sloan Stewart told the Metro Council on Monday that a brush fire broke out at the solar farm site about three weeks ago.
According to Stewart, a security guard first contacted the contractor after the fire appeared to be getting out of control, but the contractor did not respond, so 911 was called instead.
The fire department responded, but Stewart said crews could not safely access the fire inside the site.
After being contacted the next morning, Stewart said he advised that local firefighters should handle only perimeter or backup response outside the site.
For any fire inside what he described as “the compound,” he said Tennessee Forestry should be called instead. Stewart added that he spoke with the forestry division, and it agreed with that approach.
Wildlife Habitat?
Mayor Sloan Stewart said Monday that a state land division official had contacted him to say Tennessee is interested in negotiating to purchase about 400 acres from Silicon Ranch for conservation or wildlife habitat. Stewart said the property is located behind Motlow State, between Highways 55 and 130.
He described the contact as a courtesy call and said the county has no formal role in the matter.
Stewart added that he responded by saying he believed preserving the trees would be better for Motlow and the surrounding area than having solar panels behind the campus. He also cautioned that any such purchase could take years to complete.
