SD project shelved over potential for sun glare

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YANKTON (AP) — A planned greenhouse and fish production facility in southeastern South Dakota won't see the light of day because of the potential for lawsuits generated by sunlight glare reflected off the structure.

Developer Randy Golden said he is shelving the Heartland Harvest Farms project because he is worried that nearby homeowners might sue over sunlight glare from the planned 270,000-square-foot glass greenhouse, the media.

Golden, president of RC Investments Co., earlier this year conducted an experiment in which he tried to replicate the glare and view it from a ridge above the property along state Highway 52 in southern Yankton County.

"We've all pulled up behind a car before when the sun hits the glass just right and it blinds you," he said. "Well, I had an epiphany moment back in January. We know how sensitive people are just by having a flashing sign out on (the highway) or having lights turned up at just the right angle. Can you imagine what that whole 600-by-450-foot solid glass building would look like?

"The reason I've decided to pull the plug was to avoid a lawsuit," Golden told county commissioners recently.

The unassembled greenhouse has been sold to a buyer in New Jersey and the property might be of interest of Yankton County, Golden said.

The County Commission in 2009 rezoned 36 acres of land to make way for the Heartland Harvest Farms project, which was to include the greenhouse and fish production facility along with a worm farm, an aquatic culture area, a shop and office area, a retail center and possibly a restaurant.

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