ESCONDIDO — The Escondido City Council has adopted a resolution opposing the installation of large-scale battery energy storage facilities within or near the city limits.
Mayor Dane White also directed staff to consider implementing a moratorium on Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) until appropriate zoning regulations are established.
In a 4-1 vote, the City Council adopted the resolution on Aug. 28, with Councilmember Consuelo Martinez opposed. The resolution, introduced by White and Councilmember Mike Morasco, responds to the proposed Seguro battery storage facility in the Eden Valley community, located just outside Escondido at 925 Country Club Drive.
Martinez voted against the proposal, wanting to consult more experts about the project to address conflicting information.
The facility, proposed by AES Corporation, would store 320 megawatts, or 1,280 megawatt hours, enough to power 240,000 homes for four hours. It would connect to the local power grid through a new substation on-site, linked to the SDG&E Escondido Substation via a transmission line.
Initially, White was reluctant to comment on a project outside the city limits until a battery storage fire occurred in Otay Mesa earlier this year.
The resolution argues that BESS projects do not provide “realistic economic benefits to the city” and could pose health and safety risks, decrease residential land values, discourage employers and businesses from relocating to the area, and increase fire risks in communities like Eden Valley.
White emphasized that the resolution does not reflect opposition to sustainable energy or battery storage projects in general, citing the council’s previous approval of a 50-megawatt lithium-ion battery storage facility in December to replace the former Ice-Plex building.
“The difference between that facility and the proposed Seguro project is the location near residents,” White said. “They need to be reasonably located, but furthermore, I think the biggest issue with this one is the lack of respect for residents who are already there, and in particular, one resident who will have a 12-foot wall located on three sides of their home.”
Residents of Eden Valley, Harmony Grove, and Elfin Forest are strongly opposed to the project due to its proximity to hundreds of homes. Some fear that lithium-ion batteries could cause fires, disruptive noise, air pollution and other environmental hazards.
The closest home is 130 feet from the facility, and Palomar Medical Center is approximately 1,600 feet downwind.
The mayor also requested that staff send a letter to the county urging the creation of a working group to collaborate on zoning regulations for battery energy storage projects.
County staff, under the Board of Supervisors’ direction in July, are currently developing standards for BESS projects, including location criteria, design, fire and explosion risk mitigation, emergency response protocols, hazardous materials management, toxic gases, and noise. This effort also includes considering a temporary 60-day moratorium on new battery storage applications.
Several Escondido and county residents spoke in favor of the resolution.
“We realize there is a need for clean energy and storage,” said Eden Valley resident Andrew McSparron, who shares a property line with the Seguro project. “We’re not against them either… they need to be properly placed away from homes, schools, and hospitals, not in high fire-prone areas where the only exit is between two parts of a BESS facility and on two narrow lanes of Country Club Drive.”
JP Theberge, a Harmony Grove resident opposed to the battery storage project, told The Coast News that AES had done the region’s clean energy transition a huge disservice by attempting to push a large-scale battery storage facility into a residential neighborhood near a major hospital.
Theberge noted the city’s resolution marks the third recent setback for AES, referencing the county’s efforts to regulate BESS facilities and Palomar Health administration’s denial of a property easement that would have allowed Seguro to connect to an Escondido substation via hospital grounds.
“Billion dollar companies like AES think they can come into our communities and throw their money around, try to buy off politicians, homeowners, and hospitals to allow an egregious affront to the public safety of communities, but they have underestimated the principles of our local decision-makers and community members,” Theberge said via email. “They are not so easily bought off. Kudos to Palomar Hospital, Escondido City Council, and the County of San Diego for doing the right thing.”
At the meeting, AES director of permitting Corinne Lytle Bonine challenged the resolution’s claim that BESS facilities do not create realistic economic opportunities for the city.
Lytle Bonine cited a study by the San Diego North Economic Development Council showing that the project would create 458 temporary jobs and generate $11.6 million in local tax revenue during construction, with 35 permanent jobs and $5.8 million in annual property tax revenue afterward.
She emphasized that BESS projects enhance grid reliability, prevent power outages, and have significantly improved safety standards, reducing fire risks.
Lytle Bonine also noted that the facility would help Escondido reach its goal of 100% carbon neutrality by 2035.
“This goal is only possible when the grid is supported by battery energy systems,” she said.
