Mesa planning board recommends battery‑storage code with reduced separation, asks staff to review accessory threshold

The Mesa Planning and Zoning Board on Oct. 22 voted to recommend that City Council adopt a text amendment to Title 11 establishing definitions, zoning table entries and development standards for battery energy storage systems (BESS). The board approved staff’s overall recommendation but directed two specific changes: reduce the residential separation requirement from 1,000 feet to 400 feet, and ask staff to re‑examine the accessory‑use threshold by evaluating whether a 5‑megawatt cumulative cap (rather than the 1‑megawatt threshold in the draft) would be more appropriate.

The ordinance package would add BESS definitions (including “battery energy storage system,” “nameplate capacity” and “augmentation”), create a new use classification for utility‑scale facilities, and set development, screening, and noise standards citywide. Staff told the board that two pre‑submittal projects and other SRP‑driven needs informed the draft language. The board’s motion forwarded the ordinance to City Council with the two amendments and a staff review request; board members then voted to approve that recommendation.

Public commenters included technology and energy industry representatives, municipal and utility officials, emergency‑services personnel and local residents.…