Syncarpha seeks 5 MW battery-storage variance; Wheatfield ZBA tables request for more information

The Wheatfield Zoning Board of Appeals on June 8 reopened a public hearing on a variance request from Syncarpha CF II, LLC to construct a five-megawatt (5 MW) Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) on Liberty Drive and then voted unanimously to table the application pending additional paperwork and a follow-up presentation to local fire stakeholders.

The applicant told the board the proposed project remains a five-megawatt system and said the site was moved across the street on the same tax parcel. The request seeks relief from two provisions of the Town Zoning Code: a 1 MW size limit for BESS installations and a 500-foot setback requirement from property lines. The hearing record contains two different setback figures: an earlier description in the reopening notice referenced a requested 46-foot east-side setback, while materials presented by the applicant listed the east-side distance as 454 feet (west 1,145 feet, north 1,125 feet, south 706 feet). The discrepancy was raised and left unresolved during the meeting.

Paul Rogers, introduced as a safety consultant with ESRG and a retired FDNY official who helped draft New York City and state BESS guidance, described applicable standards and testing methods, including NFPA 855 and UL 9540A. Rogers said the containerized systems are designed to contain, not propagate, a fire and noted that testing protocols (UL 9540A) measure thermal runaway and fire behavior rather than acting as a pass/fail certification. "The container will not propagate or sustain a fire. It is designed to contain a fire," Rogers said. He also said state code requires that qualified personnel be able to reach a site within four hours to support local first responders and described detection and shutdown triggers tied to heat release, gases and temperature.

Board members and fire officials pressed for operational details. Questions included how local fire departments would be notified of a cell failure and who would send the alert; how long alerts would take to arrive (the consultant said notices and diagnostic data are sent to a remote company computer and shared with local responders, and that in practice qualified support could take hours to arrive); how water exposure would affect the system; container sizes (20- or 40-foot shipping-container formats); and maintenance checks for leaks. A Frontier Fire Department representative said smoke from a venting event would travel downwind toward residential areas and two large senior apartment buildings on Williams Road and asked where an evacuation site would be; the meeting record notes the Frontier Fire building on Liberty was designated as an evacuation site but that several operational questions remained unanswered.

An email from Fire Advisory Board Chairman Marc Kasprzak was read into the record expressing concern about the overall size of the installation, the composition and downwind effects of emissions in the event of thermal runaway, and proximity to residential neighborhoods and senior housing; Kasprzak offered to host a joint presentation for the Fire Departments and the FAB if the project moves forward.

After the discussion the ZBA moved to table the variance until the Building Department provides required paperwork and the Board completes notification to the Fire Advisory Board chairman so the stakeholder presentation can be scheduled. The motion to table was made by Matthew Kroening and seconded by Arthur Kroening and passed unanimously. The board also approved the minutes of its May 11 meeting and completed routine agenda business. The ZBA set its next meeting for July 13, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. in Town Hall.

What happens next: the application remains tabled pending the Building Departments submission of paperwork and a planned presentation to local fire stakeholders; the record shows several operational questions (notification procedures, evacuation logistics, and the unresolved setback discrepancy) that the board identified as needing more information before it can act.