Articles Land use and development
The Finderne Battery Storage Application, Explained
What Rockland APV Bridgewater Energy LLC proposes at East Main Street and Polhemus Lane, why a private battery storage facility needs a use variance, what the Zoning Board has asked at each hearing, and the differing capacity figures in the reports.
The short version
- The applicant: Rockland APV Bridgewater Energy LLC, Application 24-029-ZB.
- The site: Block 338, Lot 9 (760 East Main Street), at East Main Street and Polhemus Lane in Finderne, owned by the Somerset County Improvement Authority and used, as TAPinto described it, as a county maintenance yard.
- What it needs: preliminary and final major site plan approval, a minor subdivision and, because it is a private company, a D(1) use variance.
- Where it stands: hearings Feb. 10, April 14 (carried), July 28 and Oct. 20, 2026; the next is Nov. 24, 2026, as TAPinto reported. The Board has not decided.
LocalWhy has reviewed the Zoning Board’s minutes for Feb. 10, April 14 and July 28, 2026, with the transcripts of Feb. 10 and July 28. It has not yet reviewed the Oct. 20 minutes or an April 14 transcript of this application; content from those comes from TAPinto Bridgewater/Raritan and is attributed to it.
What is proposed
At the Feb. 10, 2026 hearing, John Seker, chief executive of American Power Ventures, which is partnering with Rockland Capital, described a lithium-ion battery energy storage system of 20 megawatts and 80 megawatt-hours: “a 20-megawatt facility. It can power up to 20,000 homes for four hours” (Board transcript). As TAPinto reported the hearing, it would connect to a 26-kilovolt distribution line on East Main Street, charge when power is cheap and discharge at peak demand on signals from PJM, the regional grid operator. The batteries would come from Trina Solar.
The applicant’s attorney, Glenn Pantel, said township rules allow electric storage as an “essential service” only for a public utility or government entity, so “we have acknowledged that we do need the D-1 Use Variance.” He said it holds an option for a long-term ground lease from the county authority if approved, with the county as landlord (Board transcript).
The capacity, as each source gives it:
| Source | Capacity |
|---|---|
| Board transcript, Feb. 10, 2026 (Mr. Seker’s testimony) | “a 20 megawatts, 80-megawatt hour Battery Energy Storage System”; “up to 20,000 homes for four hours” |
| TAPinto, Feb. 20, 2026 (Mr. Seker’s testimony) | 20 megawatts, 80 megawatt-hours; about 20,000 homes for four hours |
| TAPinto, April 23, 2026 | ”20,000-megawatt” |
| TAPinto, Oct. 29, 2026 | ”20,000 megawatts – enough to power 20,000 homes” |
Later in the Feb. 10 transcript a Board member, John Colucci, restated the testimony as “20,000 megawatts”; the applicant’s own testimony that night gave 20 megawatts.
The site size: Mr. Pantel told the Board on Feb. 10 that the minor subdivision would split the property into a 2.892-acre parcel to be ground leased and 4.235 acres remaining with the county authority (Board transcript). TAPinto gave about 2.89 acres (Feb. 20) and about 3 acres (April 23 and Oct. 29).
At the Council, Feb. 5, 2026
Administrator Michael Pappas told the Council that the Feb. 10 Zoning Board meeting would take up a “notable and unique case,” the Rockland APV lithium battery storage facility in Finderne. In public comment, Samantha Alley said the area is prone to flooding, that flooding at such facilities could pose fire and environmental hazards, and cited soil contamination concerns tied to the American Cyanamid site. Councilman Timothy Ring said the application was before the Zoning Board and could come before the Council on appeal, so the Council should not discuss its merits; Councilman Michael Kirsh said the public may question witnesses and comment at the Board.
The hearings
| Hearing | What the record shows | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Sept. 9, 2025 | Listed on the Board’s agenda | Agenda |
| Feb. 10, 2026 | Minutes call it the “2nd Hearing.” Witnesses John Seker and Joseph Brown of Trina Solar; “No public members were sworn.” Chairman John Kulak asked about the tax benefit of a facility on tax-exempt county land and long-term liability next to the American Cyanamid Superfund site; Mr. Pantel said the operator is usually responsible for environmental issues from its operation and agreed to provide lease terms. Continued to April 14 | Minutes and transcript; TAPinto |
| April 14, 2026 | Minutes also label it “2nd Hearing” and record it carried to July 28 without further notice. TAPinto reported testimony from Trina Solar’s Joseph Brown on how the facility would store energy and affect rates (the Feb. 10 transcript records Mr. Brown testifying that night), and that Chairman Kulak objected that no Board member or professional attended a meeting between the applicant’s fire expert and fire officials | Minutes; TAPinto |
| July 28, 2026 | Witnesses Craig Stires, PE, and fire consultant Leonard Ganesh Deonarine; “No public members were sworn.” Mr. Deonarine said NFPA 855 “says 75 feet. What we’ve put in the emergency plan was 200 feet,” for public evacuation and firefighter standoff. Mr. Pantel listed fire officials who met the consultant, among them deputy fire official Xavier Alvarado, Director of Municipal Services Tom Genova and Finderne assistant fire chief Tom Ruscetta. Adjourned to Oct. 27 | Minutes and transcript |
| Oct. 20, 2026 (special meeting) | The township’s notice and agenda call it “Continuance – 4th Hearing.” TAPinto: fire consultant Leonard Ganesh Deonarine said a fire is “improbable” and recommended a 200-foot safety zone; Chairman Kulak said the risk “can’t be 100% eliminated” and called the emergency response plan lacking; Planner Katherine Sarmad questioned dispersal distances to nearby offices, county sites and Somerset Medical Center; continued to Nov. 24 (TAPinto; LocalWhy has not yet reviewed the Oct. 20 minutes) | Notice; agenda; TAPinto |
The Oct. 20 special meeting replaced the Board’s Oct. 27 meeting, which was not held “due to Election related activity in the meeting room,” according to the Board’s Oct. 7 notice.
What is not known
- Whether the county authority or the Council must act on the lease, and whether any payment in lieu of taxes or host agreement is proposed.
- The township fire official’s and fire district’s reviews.
- What the Board’s minutes record for the Oct. 20, 2026 special meeting.
What residents can do
- Attend the Nov. 24, 2026 hearing (7 p.m., Bridgewater Township Municipal Building, 100 Commons Way). The public may question witnesses and comment.
- Read the application at the Office of the Land Use Administrator, 100 Commons Way.
- Watch the decision. A use variance needs at least five affirmative Board votes; any decision is memorialized by resolution and published as a notice of decision on the township’s legal notices page.