In an important Summit Township Planning Commission Meeting, Amador Ybarra, JCDC chair, found flaws in the corporate proposal to store cheap power to sell back as expensive power in peak periods. This is a money making scheme evaluated through the lens of our liberal leader:
I attended the Summit Township Planning Commission meeting regarding an application by Aypa Power to construct and operate a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) at 3900 Purdy Rd in Summit Twp. The BESS is planned to be used to purchase energy during off peak hours (lower cost) and resell it to the energy provider during the peak use hours (higher cost).
I made a public comment in opposition to the BESS. I called upon the commission to have a third party assessment of risks to the environment, the community, and safety. I asked them to contract an independent study to determine impacts of a BESS on our community.
The [planning commission voted to recommend approval of the applied for conditional use permit. The next step is the Township Board’s consideration of the permit. The next Summit Twp meeting is scheduled for October 21, 2025 at 5:30 pm. An independent evaluation by a third party has not been approved and should be advocated for.
The Planning Commission voted to remove the requirement that the applicant shall secure a Labor and Materials Bond. This Bond would have protected the Township if the applicant failed to construct the BESS. It is unclear why the Summit Township Planning Commission would wave a right to protect it’s own constituents. The public is needed to step up and insist on following regulations.
If storage of electrical energy is needed in our community we must call on our elected civil servants to consider using brownfield sites for the construction of energy storage systems. If we need energy storage systems we should be finding solutions that not only protect the environment but also provide the cost savings of storing off peak energy for the people, not manufacturing a method for a big corporation to profit.
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Amador Ybarra
Chair (2025-2026).
Jackson County Democratic Committee