Opponents of Silfab Solar project in SC headed to U.S. Supreme Court next
A York County residents group fighting the controversial Silfab Solar project has formally asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in the long-running zoning dispute surrounding the Fort Mill facility.
The petition, filed last week by Citizens Alliance for Government Integrity, asks the nation’s highest court to review whether York County officials improperly continued permitting the project after the York County Board of Zoning Appeals ruled in 2024 that solar panel manufacturing was not allowed under the property’s light industrial zoning.
“We have pursued every available remedy in South Carolina, yet meaningful relief has been denied or delayed every step of the way,” group president Andy Lytle said in a statement Thursday. “With another 1,000-plus middle school students expected to begin school this fall just feet from Silfab, we could not wait for justice any longer.”
The filing marks the latest escalation in the yearslong fight over Silfab Solar’s York County manufacturing facility, which has faced sustained opposition from nearby residents and school officials concerned about the project’s proximity to neighborhoods and Flint Hill Elementary School. The dispute intensified earlier this year after two chemical incidents at the plant prompted state regulators to temporarily halt operations. In March, roughly 300 gallons of potassium hydroxide spilled at the facility, followed days later by news of a hydrofluoric acid leak. The incidents prompted Flint Hill Elementary School to temporarily close and fueled renewed criticism from lawmakers and community members.
At the center of the Supreme Court petition is a May 2024 decision by the York County Board of Zoning Appeals. In a unanimous 5-0 ruling, the board determined solar panel manufacturing was not a permitted use under the site’s light industrial zoning designation.
Silfab and its landlord appealed that ruling in state court, where the case remains pending. But the citizen group argues York County officials continued issuing permits tied to the project without rezoning the property, granting a variance or obtaining another formal approval allowing the manufacturing use.
The petition does not ask the justices to directly decide the zoning dispute. Instead, the group is seeking review of a December 2025 order in which the South Carolina Supreme Court declined to hear an earlier request for emergency intervention.
In the filing, the group argues the case raises broader constitutional questions about whether local governments can continue permitting a project after a zoning appeals board has ruled the use prohibited. The petition cites differing standards among federal appeals courts involving land-use disputes and alleged violations of due process protections under the Fourteenth Amendment.
“The question presented is: Whether, and under what standard, local executive officials’ issuance of land-use permits after a local board of zoning appeals has ruled the proposed use prohibited may support a claim of arbitrary executive action under the Fourteenth Amendment,” the petition states.
The filing also references the project’s location near schools and neighborhoods. According to the petition, the site sits near Flint Hill Elementary School and the new Flint Hill Middle School, which is expected to open this fall.
Citizens Alliance for Government Integrity said the case could have implications beyond York County by clarifying constitutional limits on local permitting authority. The petition was filed by attorney Lauren Joseph Wolongevicz of Appellate Counsel PC, a law firm that handles appellate litigation, including cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court accepts only a small percentage of petitions each year, and it is unclear whether the justices will take up the case.
Meanwhile, litigation over the Silfab project continues in South Carolina courts. A separate zoning-related court hearing connected to the dispute is scheduled Tuesday morning in York County.
