A Dallas-based company hopes to build a 1,100-acre solar project between Divernon Township and Pawnee Township by 2029. Leeward Renewable Energy held an open house Wednesday at the Divernon American Legion, where community members and representatives of the company met to talk about the solar farm’s location, construction, environmental impact and employment potential.
Henkle Branch Solar is the limited liability company created to oversee the project, which the company says will generate up to 100 megawatts of solar power. The site is anticipated to operate for 30 or more years, during which time it is expected to generate an average of $400,000 in property tax payments, according to Kristen Rosenberger, the public affairs regional manager at Leeward. Henkle Branch Solar is also offering $25,000 in “neighbor benefit grants” to homeowners and renters located within 1,000 feet of the project boundary.
Ryan McCrady, president and CEO of the Springfield Sangamon Growth Alliance, said the Growth Alliance “is assisting the developers with making contacts in the community,” some of whom have expressed concerns to him about the potential impacts on Divernon.
“I think the typical concerns revolve around impact on long-term property values and impacts to the area during construction,” McCrady said. “Some individuals also have concerns about farmland being taken out of grain production.”
Otilia Ayats-Mas, a representative of Leeward, said the company would conduct a property value assessment as part of the permit process.
A 2025 study by researchers in Virginia Tech’s Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics found that agricultural land within two miles of a solar site gained 19.4% in property values, presumably because that land has a higher potential of being leased to solar. However, residential homes lost 4.8% in property value, on average.
The power generated by the project will be distributed using power purchase agreements, according to Rosenberger, which allow a developer to construct and operate a photovoltaic system while a customer agrees to purchase the power generated by the system at a fixed rate for a certain amount of time.
In 2025, Leeward signed a PPA with Google in Oklahoma to support its data center operations. Ayats-Mas said it is not known yet who will purchase the power from this particular development. She also clarified that Leeward “is not involved in the siting, development or operation of data centers.”
Rosenberger said the facility will generate more than 100 jobs during construction but that only three or four permanent employees are necessary to operate the facility once it is operational.
The land, which largely contains corn and soybean crops, will be seeded with native vegetation in between the panels, with a possibility for pollinators and sheep grazing to be incorporated as well.
“We are always very respectful of the land with pollinator fields and beekeeping. Each project is different,” said Ayats-Mas.
Rosenberger said Leeward is leasing most of the land from its owners, an increasingly common way for farmers to make up for rising farming costs. A large portion of the land that will become the Henkle Branch Solar project belongs to DAJ Farms LLLP, which is owned by the family of Sangamon County Auditor Andy Goleman. A message left with Goleman’s office was not returned.
A resident living near the project site told Illinois Times about receiving a map showing a second phase of the project expanding farther south into Montgomery County. Leeward Renewable Energy has lease agreements with JJMD Family LP, DMJJ Farms Inc. and Jessup Family Farms LLC, all of which own land south of the current Henkle Branch Solar plans.
JJMD and DMJJ are both connected to the Dowson family, which owns the majority of the land leased to the Double Black Diamond Solar Farm as well as the land across the street slated to be sold to CyrusOne to develop a data center. Darrel Thoma, the chief financial officer of Dowson Farms, confirmed that “cousins” own the land involved in the Henkle Branch project.
Jessup Family Farms LLC is managed by six family members, including Mary Jessup. Jessup and her husband, Fletcher Farrar, previously owned Central Illinois Communications, the parent company of Illinois Times.
When asked whether Leeward Renewable Energy plans to expand beyond the existing scope of the project, Ayats-Mas said, “We are actively evaluating the potential for future renewable projects across the country, including in Sangamon County. Should a separate project move forward, that project would independently apply for a permit at that time.”
Ayats-Mas said Henkle Branch Solar applied for a permit from Sangamon County following the open house, which it will need before it can begin construction. The process for applying may be changing soon, however, after the Sangamon County Zoning and Land Use Committee approved an amendment to change the process for renewable projects. A Fourth District Appellate Court ruling last month allows counties to exercise “some discretion” in approving wind and solar projects.
After the 30 or more years have elapsed, the leases go up for renewal. At that point the components of the solar panels can be replaced, and the site will continue to operate. Alternatively, the panels can be recycled and the land returned to agricultural use, said Rosenberger.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with additional information regarding the potential second phase of the project.
I’ve never seen a successful example of these alleged idyllic bees and sheep and flowers coexisting under the panels. It always looks degraded and utilitarian with sprayed weeds and bare dirt.