MANE STREET MEMPHIS $220M GRACELAND SOLAR PROJECT MOVES AHEAD
Happy holidays, y’all. h As 2023 neared its end, there’s still been a fair number of project updates and movement for significant projects or initiatives in the area (more on that below). Additionally, I’ll have a little look ahead for 2024 coming soon. So, keep an eye out for that article after the New Year. h In the meantime, let’s look at what’s cooking:
TVA, Meta $220M Graceland Solar Farm project underway
On Dec. 5, a special use permit was filed with the Memphis and Shelby County Department of Planning and Development for the Graceland Solar Project. The solar project is an 850-acre project from RWE Renewables in partnership with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). The project is located along Singleton Parkway just north of the Loosahatchie River in Millington.
“Graceland Project has a long-standing history within Shelby County dating back to 2017 when we began leasing land for the Graceland Project and has worked closely with County government during the course of our development phase,” Scott Spence, RWE vice president of solar development, wrote in a letter of intent.
In the letter of intent submitted with the permit application, Spence said the special use permit was filed in response to a resolution passed by the Shelby County Board of Commissioners in September requiring any solar farm to have a special use permit. RWE previously filed a construction permit with the Department of Planning and Development in August.
In the letter, Spence also said the permit has added approximately $2 million to $3 million in total cost for the project, with RWE already investing $50 million in the project.
Josh Mcneely of RWE said plans for the site have been in development since 2017, with a significant change in scope coming in 2020. The project was formally announced in May 2021. Today, the total cost of the project is north of $220 million
and will include approximately 284,000 solar panels, he said.
The Graceland Solar Project is part of TVA’S Green Invest partnership with RWE and Meta. The 150-megawatt solar facility will allocate 100 megawatts to Meta for use at its data center in Gallatin. The total megawatts produced are equivalent to powering approximately 24,000 households, Mcneely said. The other 40 megawatts will be used for redundancy within TVA’S system.
“TVA is an interconnected grid across seven states. All the power produced within our footprint goes on to the general grid. That’s a good thing — so that if there are interruptions on our system we have multiple redundant points to reroute electricity as needed,” TVA public relations specialist Scott Brooks said via email.
WR Graceland Solar LLC, an Austin, Texas-based affiliate of RWE, acquired 125.54 acres at 5860 Pleasant Ridge Rd. in April 2023 for $1.7 million, according to the Shelby County Register of Deeds. The remaining acres for use in the project are located on 13 parcels of land controlled by the Memphis-based DHR Farming Partnership. The land is under a 35-year lease, with an additional 5-year option.
Once the lease is up, RWE could extend use for the solar panel farm or dismantle the farm entirely.
Construction of the Graceland Solar Farm is expected to create more than 150 construction jobs along with two to four fulltime employment positions for maintenance operations once
completed. The site is also expected to generate more than $24.9 million in local property tax revenue, Mcneely said.
Mcneely said the next steps will be to file construction permits in early 2024, with an estimation construction will take approximately 12 months to complete.
Ave.
The Works Inc. and Comcap Partners are redeveloping the former Northside High School site into a 270,000square-foot mixed-use facility. The developers held a ceremonial groundbreaking for the site on Dec. 8.
Northside Square is expected to open in 2024 and will help create 320 construction jobs and 141 permanent fulltime jobs.
“This $9.5 million allocation is our second New Markets Tax Credits investment in Memphis. It is another indicator of commitment to advancing equity and opportunity in under-resourced neighborhoods across the city. This investment aligns with our mission to catalyze positive and lasting impacts in communities, and the creation of 450 jobs through this project is significant,” Pathway Lending executive vice president Hank Helton said in a statement.
On Dec. 12, the Memphis and Shelby County Board of Adjustment (BOA) approved a conditional use permit for the former Evergreen Presbyterian Church site at 1663 Autumn Ave. in the Evergreen Historic District.
The new plans, proposed by Memphis-based CNCT design, will convert the site into a coffee shop with artist studios and meeting space. A 2,570-squarefoot meeting and gathering space will be located on the upper floor of the building, in the former church area. The space will also include a 2,630-square-foot coffee shop and 2,630 square feet on the lower floors dedicated for artist studios on the lower floors.
In November, the BOA approved a waiver to hear the new site plans without waiting the usual six months after a proposal was submitted for the site. In September, the BOA rejected a mixeduse plan for the site that would’ve converted the 10,000-square-foot site into 10 apartments and a café and bakery on the lower floors.
The initial plan for the site was met with significant neighborhood opposition, as was the CNCT-LED proposal. The BOA staff report included 17 letters in support of the project with 108 letters in opposition. The opposition concerns mirrored those from the previous iterations proposed in September including apprehension toward the building’s commercial use, an increase in vehicular traffic and preference for the site to be single-family use instead.
Mane Street Memphis is a bi-weekly commercial real estate and economic development roundup.
Neil Strebig is a journalist with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at neil.strebig@commercialappeal. com, 901-426-0679 or via X/twitter, @neilstrebig