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Developer presents community‑engagement plan for proposed Carpenter Hill battery storage site
Summary
An ESA planner outlined a community engagement plan for a proposed battery energy storage project at 131 Carpenter Hill Road and sought town feedback; residents and planning-board members raised concerns about scale, cumulative local energy infrastructure, forest clearing and local control under the state permitting framework.
A planner for ESA described a community-engagement plan to Charlton Select Board members on April 14 for a proposed battery energy storage facility at 131 Carpenter Hill Road.
Wes Schaefer said ESA’s engagement plan would include two public meetings (June and September), pop‑up outreach near the town hall, a July fire‑safety webinar and the formation of a citizen advisory committee to help shape a community benefit plan. Company materials shared with the board described a conceptual footprint of roughly 15 acres to host up to 150 megawatts (150 MW) of battery storage sized for a four‑hour duration; the presenter said the package of materials and an engagement timeline would be posted to a project website and offered to the planning board for formal review.
Planning‑board members and residents raised questions about the project’s size, cumulative local impacts and the town’s prior efforts to limit large energy projects. A planning‑board alternate noted that voters had previously limited large ground‑mounted projects and battery storage thresholds in some zones; speakers urged residents to make their views known at the state permitting stage. Several speakers said Charlton already hosts significant energy infrastructure and asked whether the community should have the right to cap additional projects.
Schaefer said ESA wanted to co‑create a community benefit plan and use advisory input to refine project proposals, and he agreed to provide electronic copies of the engagement plan for posting to the town website. Select Board members invited the company to meet the planning board and to return with materials the board could post publicly; residents requested the company supply clear visualizations, acreages and technical details for review.
No formal action was taken; the Select Board and planning board will be involved in upcoming town‑level stages of public engagement prior to any state permitting filing.
