Tenaska, a Nebraska-based energy company, has filed a formal appeal of the Fluvanna Planning Commission’s vote in January that the company’s proposal for a second power plant does not align with the county’s comprehensive plan.

Now it’s up to the Fluvanna County Board of Supervisors (BOS) to decide the fate of the project.

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“If the BOS decided to uphold the planning commission’s decision, it is my understanding that there would be no path forward,” Mike Goad, a member of the Fluvanna Board of Supervisors, told Charlottesville Tomorrow. “In other words, if the BOS denies the appeal, the project cannot move forward.” 

The Planning Commission voted 3-1 against on Jan. 13 after a lengthy discussion and debate on what it meant for the proposed plant to be in a “substantial accord” with the county’s vision for a future as outlined in the county’s comprehensive plan, originally released in 2014. 

Some attendees said parts of the proposal fit with the county’s plan, such as the additional tax revenue the plant would bring, which is estimated to be $247 million in its lifetime. Some Fluvanna residents argued during the public comment period that the proposal did not align with other parts of the plan, such as the preservation of rural areas and clean air.

Many in the community viewed the Planning Commission vote as a win, as there has been a concern over the environmental and health impact of the new plant in the area. Tenaska disagreed with the decision.

“The project would directly support the plan’s stated goals of economic development and financial sustainability, rural area preservation and environmental resource protection,” Timberly Ross, Tenaska’s vice president of community relationships, wrote in an email to Charlottesville Tomorrow on Jan. 14.

Tenaska filed its appeal within 10 days of the Commission’s vote, said Goad, and the next step is for the Board of Supervisors to consider the matter.

The Board has 60 days to do so, and are currently expected to consider it during the Board’s regular meeting on March 18, Goad wrote in a Facebook post. This will also likely be when they discuss the company’s request for a Special Use Permit for the plant.

The latter timing might change if the Planning Commission, which is yet to weigh in on the special permit application, chooses to postpone the decision from its special meeting on Feb. 24 to another date. In that case, the Board of Supervisors will have to delay their decision, too.

If this happens, it would push the decision timeline further into the spring, Goad wrote.

“This situation remains very fluid,” he said.

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