HUDSONVILLE, MI (WHTC-AM/FM, Mar. 18, 2026) – A German-based energy company may have a tough selling job ahead of it to convince residents in Zeeland and Jamestown townships of the value of a planned large-scale commercial solar farm.
RWE wants to build Silver Maple Solar on 1,900 acres of multiple leased properties south of I-196. The 200-megawatt facility, to be built at a cost of $300 million, would power over 34,000 residences, with construction slated by next spring ahead of a fall of 2028 operational opening. Company officials claim that this would generate $31.6 million in local tax revenue during its lifetime, with plans to have the land revert back to agricultural purposes afterwards.
The first of three scheduled public meetings on the project was held on Tuesday night, with many attending the session at Evergreen Ministries in Hudsonville openly skeptical. Two other sessions are planned for 6 PM on Wednesday and Thursday evenings at the Zeeland Township Hall (6582 Byron Rd.), and Republican State Senator Roger Victory of Hudsonville, a commercial produce farmer himself, may be attending.
RWE officials said that public input from these meetings will be incorporated in a planned request with the Michigan Public Service Commission to approve the project, which would bypass any local control efforts.
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