Residents gathered at the Blue Jeans Community Center in Monroe City on Thursday for an open house on the proposed Blue Jeans Solar Project.

No formal presentation was given, attendees came and went as they pleased viewing displays and talking with officials with the project.

Arevon, a solar energy company based in Scottsdale, Arizona, plans to develop the project on 700 to 800 acres south of Monroe City. Community Relations Manager Pat McDonald said construction is still a couple of years away.

“Normally they take about a year to a year and a half to develop, depending on Mother Nature and how much weather wants to cooperate with us,” McDonald said. “During the peak of construction, probably 200 to 300 jobs will be created. After it’s done there’ll be a handful of people who stay around to maintain the property because Arevon is an owner-operator of the project. We don’t develop it and then sell it. We own and operate it.”

Some residents raised questions about the project’s effect on the environment, including stormwater runoff, tornado damage, and impacts on wildlife. McDonald answered questions that he says were based on misinformation.

“Some of the misinformation? Birds are going to fly over the project and die,” he said. “We’re absorbing sun rays, but we’re not amplifying those rays like some other technologies. Toxins in the water—the panels are completely sealed, and there’s not toxic runoff from the panels. We’re not going to create a heat inversion in the area and attract tornadoes. Those things are just scientifically not proven.”

McDonald said the site would be managed with sheep grazing, mechanical mowing, and pollinator-friendly vegetation beneath the panels. If the project is ever decommissioned, he said Arevon intends to return the land to farmers in better condition than it was found.

He added that the company plans to hold more public meetings and remain active in the community through volunteer efforts, with construction expected to begin in 2027.