Mesa advances West Mesa transit plan; battery storage setback debate deferred to Monday vote
MESA, ARIZONA — December 4, 2025

Mesa advances West Mesa transit plan; battery storage setback debate deferred to Monday vote

Study session featured significant debate over battery energy storage setback requirements and approval of comprehensive transit-oriented development plan for West Mesa corridor, with one council member voting against BES ordinance due to safety concerns while another opposed the 1,000-foot setback as economically damaging.

Battery Energy Storage Setback and West Mesa Transit Plan Dominate Study Session as Council Grapples with Competing Safety and Economic Concerns

Mesa City Council convened for a study session on December 4, 2025, to review the agenda for Monday's council meeting. The session featured extensive debate over two major planning items: a proposed zoning text amendment to allow battery energy storage systems in industrial zones with a 1,000-foot residential setback, and the Mesa Connected transit-oriented development plan for a five-mile West Mesa corridor. The study session revealed sharp disagreement over the BES setback requirement and broad support (with caveats) for the comprehensive transit plan.

Battery Energy Storage System Setback: The Core Conflict

Key Speeches

"I appreciate your comments and I did listen to the study session at the council meeting that I missed. I did as much research as I can. I looked at peer cities. Los Angeles is one to 300 feet. San Francisco 2 to 500. Houston 3 to 500. Miami 3 to 500. Phoenix 2 to 300. Las Vegas 3 to 500. Charlotte, North Carolina 2 to 300. Atlanta, Georgia 3 to 500 feet. I can't find anybody any cities that required a mile separation… The only city or area that I can find that prohibits them altogether was in Hawaii in Kauaii in particular because of the fire risk." — Council Member Jen Duff

"I spent 20 years in hazardous materials. I've been a tox medicic. I know the byproducts of combustion when these things burn. I've written an article on them. I've fought battery fires. I've been part of the NFPA process… There is no quantitative number on how far away from residential or other uses this must be because there hasn't been large-scale testing. There's been component testing, but a large scale and fire testing has not been done." — Council Member Goforth

"The energy is already there is being wasted… this is the cheapest fastest energy available for economic development… SRP has no way to replace that energy in order to prepare… 600 megawatts of clean energy that we're expecting and that is they said limit our economic growth and grid reliability in this area. 400 foot setback achieves the goal. A thousand foot setback does not." — Council Member Jen Duff, quoting SRP concerns

Timeline

Opposition (Council Member Duff's Position)

Support (Council Member Goforth's Position)

Project Details

Procedural and Interpretive Questions

City Attorney Jim clarified that if the ordinance fails on Monday, BES will not be allowed in Mesa; staff would return in January or February with alternative options. If the 1,000-foot setback is approved, council can later amend the ordinance to reduce the setback, but doing so would require a full public-notice and Planning & Zoning Board process.

Planning Director Mary noted that two pending applications are positioned to become "procedurally legal-conforming uses" (a category recently adopted by the council) if this ordinance passes. This distinction allows sites that met standards at approval time but later became non-conforming due to a zoning interpretation to be treated as conforming for financing and development purposes. Council Member Goforth requested a map showing industrial zoning, residential zoning, and existing SRP substations to visualize the actual impact of the 1,000-foot requirement across the city, particularly in District 3 (her district). Staff indicated this analysis would be completed but noted that not all substations have the capacity to support BES systems.

Mesa Connected Transit-Oriented Development Plan

Key Speeches

"I'm of course very supported. I think this is really a boost um to the area and it's going to make it more cohesive and the connected plan pulling together West Mesa… Building a place not a project and I think this could be very powerful for West Mesa… This is a long time in coming for West Mesa." — Council Member Jen Duff

"For us in West Mesa, I think I go back to why this corridor… faster projected growth two times faster than citywide this area, right?… The need to create um options for the future is the reason why this quarter makes sense… We can't maintain the status quo in this area, right?… More people even before the announcement of the theme park district… we need options for people to travel and have placemaking opportunities across this area." — Council Member Francisco Heredia

Timeline

Project Details

Plan Structure and Key Components

The plan consists of five chapters:

  1. Introduction: Purpose, planning process, public engagement, organization.
  2. Existing conditions overview: Population, economy, mobility, housing data (detailed in appendices).
  3. Vision and guiding principles: Five guiding principles and corridor-wide strategies to create walkable communities, mixed housing, business support, revitalization, infill, adaptive reuse, expanded mobility, and enhanced public spaces.
  4. Transit node planning: Classification of 11 nodes by intensity (neighborhood, urban, regional); transit node evaluation based on TOD characteristics, redevelopment potential, and transit readiness; individual profiles for each node.
  5. Implementation and action plan: Specific programs and text amendments to support the vision.

Transit Node Classifications

Support

Council Members Jen Duff, Francisco Heredia, and Goforth expressed strong support, emphasizing:

Opposition and Concerns

Council Member Taylor, newly elected, raised concerns about:

Clarifications Provided by Staff and Council

On community engagement: Jen Duff and Francisco Heredia have represented West Mesa for 7 years; planning was informed by continuous constituent feedback. Outreach was diverse (pop-ups, focus groups, online surveys, social media, mailers) but voluntary participation is always low in planning projects. Responses received were largely positive from businesses and residents.

On binding effect: Plan does not bind city to financial obligations or investments. All action-plan items (text amendments, design standards, demolition programs, small-business support) require future council approval. Implementation is phased and evolutionary.

On zoning overlay: Proposed approach is an optional, opt-in overlay (similar to form-based code) rather than mandatory rezoning. Property owners can choose to adopt new development standards if they offer advantages; no mandatory rezoning.

On grant funding: Two prior studies (Fiesta District Alternative Analysis and Tempe-Mesa Streetcar Feasibility Study, both completed 2021) were funded by Proposition 400 (regional sales tax for transportation), not local taxes. Prop 400 sunsets December 31, 2025; Proposition 479 (passed November 2024) will succeed it.

On living document: Plan is intentionally flexible. Council will revisit it as conditions change and will approve each implementation step separately. Specific concerns (e.g., Council Member Summers's dislike of billboard overlay expansion) can be discussed when those items come before council.

On action plan: John Giles highlighted examples such as demolition-assistance programs and small-business support as potentially replicable in other parts of the city beyond the corridor.

Vote and Next Steps

Study session vote: Informational; no formal vote recorded. Ordinance to be introduced Monday, December 8; final approval scheduled for January 12, 2026, to meet February 2026 FTA grant close-out deadline (managed through City of Phoenix).

Other Notable Items

Paragrin Data Sharing Platform (Police Department Pilot—Items 7A and 7B)

Deputy Director Pat Phelps and IT Manager Wayne Kuang presented a one-year pilot project to implement the Paragrin data-sharing platform for Mesa Police Department. The system enables integrated searching of records management and CAD data within Mesa and across regional agencies (Tempe, Gilbert, Queen Creek), replacing an aging 10+-year-old system (Crime Tracer/CopLink). Funded by Senate Bill 1735 state grant ($215,800 for year one); no binding obligation for year two. Council Member Taylor questioned data management, encryption, and potential public-records request improvements. Police indicated the system reduces manual searches, automates crime analysis, and provides mobile interface for officers. Monthly cost and year-two funding depend on success and additional state grants. Vote scheduled for Monday; no opposition noted in study session.

Fujifilm Expansion and Rezoning (Item 8B)

Fujifilm facility expansion south of US-24 in industrial area. Company acquiring former ADOT agricultural parcel to be rezoned from agricultural to heavy industrial. Site plan shows new buildings on west side of facility. Project includes 80 new well-paid jobs and is part of PIRATE rail-spur project, which could remove dozens of trucks daily from roads. Design review underway to maximize aesthetic appeal despite OSHA visibility requirements for worker safety. Approved for rezoning and expansion. Council Member Taylor questioned public comments (none recorded due to industrial location outside citizen-notification radius) and aesthetic concerns; Council Member Goforth noted company has worked extensively on design, acknowledging aesthetic challenges but emphasizing economic and transportation benefits.

AWS Data Center with Private Substation (Item 6A)

Amazon Web Services data center under construction in industrial area. Project requires council use permit for private electrical substation to step down voltage for facility operations. SRP substation is adjacent; private substation is needed for applicant's specific requirements. Council Member Taylor questioned the need for separate substation and whether public comments were solicited (none recorded due to industrial location). Planning staff explained this is common infrastructure at other data centers and design review will include screening per city ordinance. Approved.

Crime Lab Regional Services and Reimbursement (Item 5A)

Mesa Crime Laboratory serves four agencies (Mesa, Tempe, Gilbert, Queen Creek) on cost-neutral basis. Forensic Lab Director Kim highlighted dramatic stability improvements since 2012 when the lab became regional. Turnaround times, capacity, and award-winning status improved; prevents smaller agencies from lab closures. Intergovernmental agreements based on anticipated workload; invoiced at year start; monitoring throughout year to manage budget. Agencies absorb costs through intergovernmental payments. Vote scheduled for Monday; no opposition noted.

Duration

Controversies & Context

Battery Energy Storage Setback Debate

The 1,000-foot residential setback became the focal point of a broader disagreement over how Mesa should balance renewable-energy infrastructure, grid reliability, economic development, and public safety.

Jen Duff argument rested on empirical research: peer cities across the nation have adopted setbacks ranging from 100 to 500 feet; American Planning Association, NFPA (National Fire Protection Association), and industry professionals endorse similar ranges. She argued the 1,000-foot requirement is not supported by any study, incident, or professional standard and makes BES economically unviable for Mesa. SRP's letter underscored this: the proposed setback will eliminate 600 MW of clean energy Mesa is counting on, undermining both grid reliability in high-growth areas and the city's ability to attract advanced-manufacturing businesses that require reliable, affordable power. The conflict with the Signal View multifamily development exemplifies the practical problem: a project already approved with a 400-foot setback will lose capacity if the ordinance passes with 1,000 feet, delaying promised renewable energy supply.

Council Member Goforth's argument emphasized precaution in the absence of full-scale fire-testing data. She cited her 20-year hazardous-materials background, noting that lithium-ion battery combustion produces unique toxic byproducts and rapid fire propagation that differ from standard house fires. She presented evidence from jurisdictions with higher setbacks (Santa Cruz, Kern, Alameda counties in California; New York State proposals; several California and New York municipalities with 1,000-foot to mile-plus requirements). She framed the 1,000-foot setback as reasonable and noted it does not prohibit BES systems in Mesa, only requires greater separation. She also acknowledged the competing concerns about grid reliability and economic development and indicated willingness to revisit the distance if new evidence emerges.

The underlying tension is between precautionary safety (absent complete fire-testing data, wider separation is conservative) and market-driven energy investment (renewables require proximity to substations; excessive separation makes deployment uneconomical and reduces clean-energy availability, driving up costs for residents and forcing reliance on less efficient alternatives).

Mesa Connected Plan: Community Engagement and Implementation Ambiguity

Council Member Taylor's skepticism focused on two issues: the low participation rate in public engagement and the lack of concrete costing and implementation timelines. Her concern is partly procedural (she was not present for years of planning and lacks context) and partly substantive: with 455 responses from 72,000 residents, how representative is the feedback? If 4,000+ units are coming to Fiesta Mall regardless, why is the plan necessary beyond providing advisory guidance?

Staff and supporting council members' response: The plan is not about building; it is about zoning, design standards, and incentive programs (demolition assistance, small-business support) to guide and accelerate private investment. The high organic growth in the corridor, plus the planned Fiesta redevelopment, creates urgency to provide a strategic framework so the city can capture economic benefits and protect existing character through context-sensitive development rather than piecemeal projects. Engagement rates of ~0.6% are normal for planning projects; continuous representation by Jen Duff and Francisco Heredia provides accountability to constituents.

Unresolved questions include: (1) What is the cost to Mesa for demolition assistance and small-business-support programs? (2) Is light rail, streetcar, or bus rapid transit planned, and if so, when and with what impact on right-of-way? (3) Will zoning overlay adoption be voluntary or mandatory? (4) If plan approval binds council to no financial obligations, how will property-owner opt-in for overlay result in streamlined review?

The January 12 vote deadline (FTA grant close-out February 2026) compressed council's timeline. John Giles and City Attorney Jim indicated that staff can continue refining implementation strategies in January if the plan is approved in principle, subject to future text amendments and council votes on specific programs.

Votes

No formal votes were taken during the study session (which is informational). Both the BES ordinance and Mesa Connected plan are scheduled for introduction Monday, December 8, and will return for final votes at later dates (BES on Monday, per Jim's clarification; Mesa Connected on January 12).