KILGORE, NEBRASKA – September 10, 2025
BSH Kilgore announced today it has filed a lawsuit in Cherry County District Court to defend its property rights concerning their Kilgore wind energy project. This action comes after the Cherry County Board of Adjustment voted to uphold the Cherry County Zoning Administrator’s “report” of non-compliance regarding BSH Kilgore’s valid conditional use permit.
“While we would much rather work collaboratively with Cherry County, the Board of Adjustment has, unfortunately, left us with no alternative,” says Michael Knapp, BSH Kilgore’s Senior Vice President of Operations. “Exercise of our conditional use permit is a fundamental property right, and the Board of Adjustment has acted to revoke this right without basis in law. The fact that the council members did not take the time to state reasons for their votes, until after they voted, further underscores the procedural deficiencies.”
BSH Kilgore has consistently maintained its compliance with all permit conditions. In October 2024, BSH Kilgore presented documentation to the Cherry County Board of Commissioners demonstrating its compliance with all 12 conditions of approval, which the County Board did not dispute at the time. Construction of the wind farm has been delayed by ongoing litigation, and the 44 months of prior litigation likewise “equitably tolled” all development deadlines—a fact expressly acknowledged on the record by the County’s own counsel.
“BSH Kilgore has already invested years of development on this project, and we anticipate years yet to complete it, particularly given the prior litigation,” Knapp continued. “We are well within the conditional use permit timeframes and our rights to continue with the project. We reiterate that the claims made in the zoning letter do not reflect the facts or the official permitting record.”
The legal action follows a 3-2 vote by the Board of Adjustment to affirm the Zoning Administrator’s findings. BSH Kilgore previously highlighted that the Zoning Administrator failed to contact them prior to issuing the initial letter, and that the Administrator’s assertions were “factually inaccurate and unsupported by the public record.” BSH Kilgore’s legal counsel had previously requested that the Zoning Administrator provide the sources and reasoning behind her findings, which appeared to misstate and misquote actual permit conditions.
“Property rights still matter in Cherry County, Nebraska, and we will defend those rights as necessary,” concluded Knapp. “By formally filing a lawsuit with the Cherry County District Court, we intend to safeguard our conditional use permit and the property rights it guarantees.”
Contact/Media Inquiries:
402 389-1668
news@sandhillsenergy.com
1403 Harney Street, Suite 200
Omaha, NE 68102
About BSH Kilgore
BSH Kilgore is a project-specific subsidiary of Sandhills Energy, a renewable energy development company based in Nebraska and Iowa with projects throughout the Midwest. Focused on commercial and utility generation, the company has extensive experience in project development, from identification to engineering, construction, and operations.
