Staten Island officials say they are being ‘inundated’ with battery storage facility plans

Staten Island residents say they are being “inundated” with a growing number of battery storage facilities looking to develop in the borough.

Borough President Vito Fossella said at a news conference Wednesday that a new 10,000-square-foot lithium ion battery energy storage system facility is being considered for an empty lot adjacent to a residential neighborhood on Victory Boulevard in Castleton Corners. He said the potential site’s proximity to housing was a concern.

“We’re not necessarily opposed to these storage units, but they shouldn’t be in people’s backyards,” he said at a press conference.

Lithium battery fires are toxic and hard to put out, which is why the FDNY has steep regulation in building facilities.

Still, residents and Staten Island lawmakers say that because land is cheaper in Staten Island, these facilities are being clustered in their borough.

“And then we lose out on a development opportunity that could have been something better, a commercial storefront or homes,” City Councilmember David Carr said. “Those are the kinds of things we want and those are the kinds of things that this area is zoned for.”

It’s unclear who is actually building the new facility in Castleton Corners. One of the city’s largest battery storage developers, NineDot, is developing another facility in nearby Great Kills. Messages to the company were not immediately returned.