Planning commission grants 2-year extension for Industrial Parkway battery storage permit

The Santa Maria Planning Commission on June 24 approved a two-year extension for a previously issued planned development permit allowing a 10-megawatt battery energy storage system at 2916 Industrial Parkway.

The extension keeps the permit valid until Aug. 18, 2027, and was approved by roll call after staff and the applicant described ownership, interconnection progress and emergency-response planning. The motion (A20250004) passed by a 5-0 recorded vote.

City planner Frank Alvaro told the commission the project received its initial plan development permit on Aug. 3, 2022, for a one-acre site and eight individual battery containers. Alvaro said the site sits in an M-1 light industrial zone, is more than a quarter-mile from the nearest sensitive receptors, and that the recently adopted local BES ordinance does not apply retroactively to this extension request. He said the applicant has been coordinating with utilities on an interconnection agreement and a power-purchase agreement.

Bridal…