{"id":257005,"date":"2026-06-05T23:18:46","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T23:18:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/257005\/"},"modified":"2026-06-05T23:18:46","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T23:18:46","slug":"not-for-sale-middle-village-community-rally-against-proposed-lithium-ion-battery-facility-qns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/257005\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Not for sale\u2019: Middle Village community rally against proposed lithium-ion battery facility \u2013 QNS"},"content":{"rendered":"

More than 100 residents, parents, educators, business owners and community leaders gathered on Tuesday, June 2, in Middle Village<\/a> to voice their opposition against the proposed NineDot Energy lithium-ion battery facility at 64-30 69th Pl. The site will be directly across from P.S.\/I.S. 128 and adjacent to Juniper Valley Animal Hospital<\/a>, a daycare center and other sensitive community spaces, including residential homes.<\/p>\n

\"\"Photo by Paulina Albarracin
\n\"\"Photo by Paulina Albarracin<\/p>\n

Organized by Council Member Phil Wong<\/a>, the rally follows a long-term community resistance<\/a> to the Battery Energy Storage System (BESS). QNS reported on rallies<\/a> related to a growing wave of similar projects in New York City<\/a>. Moreover, a petition launched in October 2025<\/a> to call on elected officials to halt plans for battery facilities in residential areas, underscoring universal safety concerns that residents say affect vulnerable groups (e.g., children, pets) and the environment (e.g., fires).<\/p>\n

While QNS initially observed dozens of attendees, the crowd grew to over 100 by the end of Tuesday\u2019s rally.
\n\"\"Photo by Paulina Albarracin\n<\/p>\n

The event began with Wong\u2019s remarks, claiming that corporations want to profit from the community by \u201cputting in hundreds of refrigerator-sized batteries in this empty lot.\u201d The Council Member also stated that company representatives were personally notifying neighbors that the battery facility is \u201csafe.\u201d<\/p>\n

A series of chants soon vocalized throughout the rally \u2014 \u201cNot here!\u201d was a particularly prominent phrase, along with \u201cHey! Ho! NineDot\u2019s gotta go!\u201d and \u201cNot for sale!\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Charlie Vavruska, the Education Director & Constituent Services Liaison, chanting with the crowd at the BESS rally in Middle Village. Photo by Paulina Albarracin<\/p>\n

The highly energized rally also featured remarks from Juniper Park Civic Association<\/a> (JPCA) President Tony Nunziato, former Council Member Robert Holden, Chief of Staff Raimondo Graziano, Middle Village Chamber of Commerce representative Sal Crifasi, Queens Political Action Coordinator of the United Federation of Teachers Washington Sanchez, and local resident and treasurer of Queens Community Board 5<\/a> (CB5) Eric Butkiewicz. CB5 previously passed a resolution formally opposing the proposed location, as confirmed in a press release.<\/p>\n

Among the speakers was Guardian Angels founder and former mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa, who gave concluding remarks that boosted the morale of protestors, positioning himself as an ally in the continued fight for neighborhood preservation.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou win some battles, you lose some battles,\u201d said Sliwa to the crowd. \u201cBut guess what? This is a fight worth winning for everyone in this community!\u201d
\n\"\"Guardian Angels founder and former mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa speaking to the crowd at the BESS rally in Middle Village. Photo by Paulina Albarracin
\n\"\"Curtis Sliwa and Council Member Phil Wong at the BESS rally in Middle Village. Photo by Paulina Albarracin\n<\/p>\n

A number of parents, teachers, students, and families from P.S.\/I.S. 128 and P.S.\/I.S. 49 joined residents and business owners in calling for the project to be relocated to a more appropriate, non-residential location.<\/p>\n

Bernard Chow, the Constituent Services Liaison from Wong\u2019s District Office, shared his concerns about potential fires with QNS. Based on research data, he said that it takes \u201cat least four days to burn out battery farm fire,\u201d along with \u201cconsistent watering of the facility\u201d to douse the flames. Chow added that such a facility should not be in close proximity to a school filled with children for health reasons (e.g., inhaling contaminated air).<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very important that the neighbors come together and understand the risk that\u2019s involved in it,\u201d said Chow. \u201cAnd that we need to have the legislature look into that and make sure this kind of facility cannot be too close to residents.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ara Chekmayan, a local resident, noted one other issue with the proposed facility: a lack of a mitigation plan in the event of an \u201cexplosion\u201d or other unplanned, long-term effects connected to BESS. He also added noise as another concern for the neighborhood.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019d like to have more clarity,\u201d said Chekmayan. \u201cWe\u2019d like to be able to speak to them at a community forum where we can talk to them directly so that we can air concerns and find out what is being done to protect the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brandon Castro, a State Assembly District 30 candidate, voiced his support for the neighborhood\u2019s pushback against the proposed BESS site, having attended protests with local leaders, one of which involved a migrant shelter in 2024 \u201cfor over 30 weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n

The candidate also noted the site\u2019s ramifications, calling for a stop to corporate developments in residential neighborhoods.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not just a Middle Village problem,\u201d said Castro. \u201cThis is a New York City problem, this is a land use problem and this is a community problem. I just want people to know that we\u2019re going to put a stop to this and that no matter where you are from, you have to be against something like this.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Former Council Member Robert Holden at the BESS Rally in Middle Village. Photo by Paulina Albarracin
\n\"\"Raimondo Graziano, the Chief of Staff at the District Office of State Senator Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr., at the BESS rally in Middle Village. Photo by Paulina Albarracin
\n\"\"Photo by Paulina Albarracin
\n\"\"Local resident and treasurer of Queens Community Board 5 Eric Butkiewicz at the BESS rally in Middle Village. Photo by Paulina Albarracin<\/p>\n

\u201cThe community came out Tuesday night to once again make clear that this is a terrible location for a lithium-ion battery facility,\u201d said Wong in a statement. \u201cHundreds of people stood together and sent a message that could not be ignored. Parents, teachers, students, homeowners, business owners, and community leaders all spoke with one voice. NineDot had an exit ramp. The company was presented with a more suitable location that would have avoided much of this conflict, but instead chose profits over the community and continues to push forward despite overwhelming opposition.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rally accentuated \u201cthe broad coalition opposed to the proposed site, which includes U.S. Rep. Grace Meng, State Sen. Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr., Assemblymember Andrew Hevesi, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, the JPCA, the Middle Village Chamber of Commerce, the United Federation of Teachers, CB5 and countless residents throughout the area,\u201d as confirmed in a press release.<\/p>\n

\"\"Photo by Paulina Albarracin<\/p>\n

Paul Pogozelski, the president of the\u00a0Middle Village Residents Association<\/a>\u00a0(MVRA) and the\u00a0Middle Village Roller Hockey League<\/a>, offered his thoughts on the rally.<\/p>\n

\u201cPhil and I are the only two people who have been present at all three rallies, and we\u2019ve both organized efforts to oppose this project,\u201d said Pogozelski. \u201cThe timing of this event is concerning because it\u2019s the first rally being held after the construction barricades have been installed and seems the project is not being deterred by the Department of Buildings.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was great to see the community come out in such force to show solidarity and I want to thank Council Member Phil [Wong] for recognizing my efforts,\u201d he added.
\n\"\"Photo courtesy of the District Office of Council Member Phil Wong\n<\/p>\n

\u201cAs long as the proposal at this location remains active, we will continue to call out everyone enabling it,\u201d Wong continued. \u201cThat includes investors such as Deutsche Bank, Manulife, First Citizens Bank, and The Carlyle Group, as well as public entities including NYSERDA and NY Green Bank. These organizations should ask themselves why they are supporting a company that ignored a reasonable alternative location, disregarded widespread community concerns, and continues to push forward despite opposition from elected officials, civic organizations, educators, parents, and residents. The community has spoken clearly. It is time for NineDot and its backers to listen.\u201d<\/p>\n

In response to the matter, a NineDot Energy spokesperson issued the following statement.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cAt a time when Middle Village residents are facing chronic brownouts and rising electricity costs, it\u2019s unfortunate that their Council Member is working so hard to spread misinformation about infrastructure that would contribute to a more affordable, more reliable, and cleaner power grid,\u201d said the spokesperson. \u201cThere will not be \u2018hundreds\u2019 of batteries on this site; there will be four Tesla Megapacks, which are one of very few energy storage technologies pre-approved by the FDNY for use in the city.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe trust the FDNY, not politicians, to tell us what\u2019s safe. We follow the FDNY\u2019s toughest-in-the-nation safety standards, which include 24-hour monitoring and heat-sensing cameras, battery management systems to automatically shut off overheated cells, fire-rated walls, and other layers of safety redundancies,\u201d continued the spokesperson. \u201cThese standards already apply to the 30+ battery storage systems currently operating across New York City today. Not one of these systems has seen any fire safety incident whatsoever, and several of them are located closer to schools, residences, and community facilities than ours in Middle Village will be.\u201d<\/p>\n

As previously reported by QNS<\/a>, some 7,500 BESS sites are located across the state \u2014 only three sites have had a fire reported in the last year (\u201ca 0.4% failure rate<\/a>\u201c). Within the 30 operating BESS sites in New York City, none of the three reported fires occurred in the five boroughs.<\/p>\n

David Maggiotto, the Deputy Press Secretary of the NYC Department of Buildings (DOB), confirmed that the DOB has received a job application for a BESS installation at 64-30 69th Pl. in Middle Village and remains \u201cunder review.\u201d But the site\u2019s foundation work has been \u201capproved and permitted.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDOB\u2019s Office of Technical Certification and Research performs extensive review of all BESS applications, and both DOB and FDNY have strict regulations related to battery energy storage systems that ensure that these projects meet the highest safety standards,\u201d confirmed Maggiotto.<\/p>\n

The New York City Fire Department has not responded to a request for comment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"More than 100 residents, parents, educators, business owners and community leaders gathered on Tuesday, June 2, in Middle…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":257006,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[100150,14494,100151,2025,154,310,86491,2609,9,24,100152,63,1260,8430,122,124,123,7153,18410],"class_list":["post-257005","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-battery-farm","tag-bess","tag-bess-facility","tag-community-news","tag-curtis-sliwa","tag-daily-newsletter","tag-district-30","tag-middle-village","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-ninedot-energy","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-politics","tag-phil-wong","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news","tag-rally","tag-robert-holden"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257005","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257005"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257005\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/257006"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257005"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257005"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257005"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}