Bouchelle Road Solar 1 CPCN Public Hearing

PSC Sets Public Hearing on Proposed Cecil County Solar Project

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April 15, 2026

(BALTIMORE, MD) – Local residents and other interested members of the public are invited to comment on a proposal by Bouchelle Road Solar 1, LLC to build a 5.0 MW solar generating facility in Cecil County. The hearing will take place on Thursday, April 30, 2026 at 6:00 p.m. in the Technology Building (Room 208D) at Cecil College, 1 Seahawk Drive in North East.

The Maryland Public Service Commission has delegated this case to its Public Utility Law Judge Division; Public Utility Law Judge Christine L. Burke will preside over the hearing.

In June 2025, the developer – New Leaf Energy – applied to the Commission for what is known as a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN), which grants an applicant the authority to construct an energy generating station in Maryland. According to the application, the developer proposes to build the project, intended as part of Maryland’s community solar program, on 37 acres of a 111-acre property at 600 Bouchelle Road in Elkton.

In addition to taking comments from the public, the hearing will include a presentation by the applicant, brief statements by the parties, including the Power Plant Research Program of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and the Commission’s Technical Staff, as to their respective roles and recommendations in the case.

The hearing will also include a virtual option for those unable to attend in person. Attendees can register (by April 28, 2026) from the ‘File a Public Comment’ page of the Commission’s website, https://psc.maryland.gov/online-services/file-a-public-comment/:

• Scroll down to the Calendly application;
• Click on the entry for ‘9797-Bouchelle Road Solar 1 (CPCN)’
• Click on April 30, 2026, select 6:00 p.m. and click ‘Next’
• Enter name and email address and click ‘Schedule Event’ Registrants will receive a Zoom link by email after finishing the sign-up process. Barring any technical difficulties, a recording will be available on the PULJ Division’s (MD PSC PULJs) YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/@mdpscpuljs327

In addition to the hearing, written comments can be sent electronically through the Commission’s online portal at: https://psc.maryland.gov/online-services/file-a-public-comment/, or by mail. Comments sent by mail should be addressed to: Jamie Bergin, Chief Clerk, Maryland Public Service Commission, William Donald Schaefer Tower, 6 St. Paul Street, 16 th Floor, Baltimore, MD 21202. So that they are noted in the proper case file, all comments should reference Case No. 9797 and can be sent through May 8, 2026.

A copy of the application is available for public view at the Cecil County Department of Land Use and Development Services, 200 Chesapeake Blvd. (Suite 2300) in Elkton.

Media contact: Tori Leonard | tori.leonard@maryland.gov

About the Public Service Commission:
The Maryland Public Service Commission regulates electric and gas utilities and suppliers, telephone companies (land lines), private water and sewer companies, passenger motor vehicle carriers for hire, taxicab companies in some jurisdictions and bay pilot rates. The Commission implements the State’s energy policy and also regulates the siting of energy generating facilities and high-voltage transmission lines.

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