An attorney for the developer and representatives from AC Power presented a preliminary plan for a battery energy storage system (BESS) at 3695 Broadway during the Town of Cheektowaga board meeting on Nov. 25, 2025.

Peter Sorgey, the project attorney, said the property is a former industrial parcel now listed as a Superfund site and that the company expects to occupy roughly a one-acre footprint of the 7-acre lot. AC Power’s on‑site representative, who identified himself as Kinshuk, said the company specializes in siting BESS projects on brownfields and that the installations are intended to draw power when rates are low and dispatch it back to the grid during peak pricing, improving grid stability and reducing short-term price spikes. "A battery energy storage system will draw energy from the grid when rates are low and inject it right back into the grid when rates for ratepayers such as you and I are the highest," Kinshuk said.

The presentation included technical and site‑planning details: the developer said the project would interconnect to existing NYSEG infrastructure, proposed landscaping and expanded setbacks beyond typical requirements, and limited physical changes to the broader 7-acre parcel. The presenter said the company has performed standard studies (Phase I environmental, wetlands review) and expects the facility life to be in the order of 25 years, with a decommissioning assurance and bond to restore the site when operations cease.

Board members and staff focused on three areas of concern. First, zoning and review path: Dan Young of the planning department explained that the town’s current zoning code does not list this new use and the developer therefore sought a use variance before the Zoning Board of Appeals; Young said the zoning board must consider whether a public‑utility standard applies or whether a use variance is required. Second, public safety and fire response: council members asked whether the containers are fire‑rated and what on‑site suppression or detection would be provided; the developer said the system is a multilayer design with cell‑, pack‑ and container‑level safety measures, remote CO2 monitoring and automatic shutdown capability, and that the company would meet with the town fire chief to provide training and equipment as needed. "We are incorporating five fire safety measures starting from the cell level, going to the battery level, and then to the battery pack level," Kinshuk said, adding there is a shutdown sequence and fire‑retardant linings in containers.

Third, oversight and permitting: presenters acknowledged that the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) must review any new use on a state‑regulated Superfund site and that host‑community agreements and decommissioning bonds would be typical elements in project approvals.

Board members requested additional visuals, comparisons to other local projects, and evidence of operational and emergency procedures. The developers said they would provide engineering plans and meet with local officials, including the fire chief. The presentation ended without any formal vote; the project remains at the use‑variance and site‑plan stage and would require DEC concurrence because of the site’s Superfund status.

The town staff noted that the EAC (environmental advisory body) would review site‑plan materials once filed and that the Zoning Board of Appeals will have to rule on any use variance before final site‑plan work proceeds.