TL;DR

Two weeks of news, one episode. Michael, Ann, and Daniel break down what’s been happening in Leon County and across the region — from a new planning committee that may lack real teeth, to a solar and BESS facility that just broke ground with no county fire marshal in place to inspect it.

Watch / Listen

Prefer audio? Search “Know Leon County Podcast” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Amazon Music.

Hosts

Michael, Ann, and Daniel — Know Leon County

What We Covered

Leon County

  • 391 Planning Commission is official — applications are open, but commissioners have already said they don’t have to act on its recommendations. Win or just optics?
  • Pecan Solar & BESS on Highway 3 near Hilltop has broken ground after sitting dormant since 2018. Are they using components on the Texas Prohibited Technology List? Is anyone checking fire code compliance?

Surrounding Counties

  • Robertson County — residents just found out their commissioners quietly approved a reinvestment zone for a solar farm. Sound familiar?
  • Van Zandt County — their unanimous moratorium is one month strong. What made it work and what Leon County can learn from it.
  • Grimes County — learned about a massive data center on March 10th when Geronimo Power called the Mayor of Iola. Community meeting: March 19th, 6pm, Iola Community Center.

State Level — Texas

  • Leon County commissioners admitted they “aren’t fire experts” — then lifted a burn ban during extreme drought with no formal process. That’s exactly why a county fire marshal matters.
  • CATL and Gotion are on Texas’ Prohibited Technologies List — but there’s no law requiring developers to disclose what battery cells go into these projects. At least 3 Texas BESS projects are implicated.

Key Takeaway

Rural Texas counties are being targeted for large-scale energy infrastructure — solar farms, BESS, and data centers — often with little transparency and no formal safety review. Communities have tools right now to push back: local ordinances, 391 committees, development agreements, and engaged elected officials.

Upcoming

Grimes County Community Meeting March 19th, 6pm — Iola Community Center

Links & Resources

Notes / Corrections

If we misspoke on a statute, process, or terminology, drop a comment or send a message and I’ll post a correction here.