In November, Morro Bay voters will decide on a ballot measure that could grant residents the power to block public land rezonings, an indirect effort to stop the potential construction of a battery plant.
Measure A-24 was placed on the November ballot by local organization Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation that advocated against the construction of a massive battery plant by Texas-owned energy company Vistra at the Morro Bay Power Plant site on Embarcadero Street, a site that’s remained vacant since 2014.
In 2020, Vistra proposed building a 600-megawatt battery energy storage facility spanning more than 24 acres on the 107-acre plot of land.
“The preexisting regional utility infrastructure that ratepayers paid to develop and maintain over decades makes the Morro Bay plant site ideal to help solve the region’s energy security challenges,” reads a statement from Vistra.
While A-24 doesn’t explicitly state opposition to the Vistra plant, if passed, the measure could allow voters to block its construction—in theory.
A-24 proposes that Morro Bay voters would have the final say when it comes to the zoning decisions for 103-acres that includes the harbor east of Morro Rock and 63-acres of the power plant, prohibiting the city from making these decisions on that plot of land without a majority of public approval.
Currently, the power plant land is zoned as commercial land, and would need to be rezoned to “industrial” before Vistra could could start construction. If A-24 passes, the city would need the OK from voters before proceeding.
According to its website, Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation argues that the battery plant would disrupt the beauty and intrinsic value of the waterfront, degrade the natural environment, and be unhealthy for the tourists and residents of Morro Bay.
“Use your imagination to envision the ideal use for this precious coastal land. Protect our choice as a community to decide how this property should be developed,” its website reads.
After receiving more than 1,000 signatures of support and a 4-0 vote from the City Council on Aug. 9, A-24 nabbed a spot on the election ballot.
Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation did not respond to New Times’ request for comment before publication.
While Citizens of Estero Bay Preservation advocated for more power to the people, those opposed want that power to stay with local public officials and questioned whether the measure would actually block the battery plant.
Morro Bay Citizens Opposed to A-24 argue that the measure takes away control of an informed City Council.
“A-24 is bad public policy,” said Citizens Opposed to A-24 Principal Officer Marlys McPherson.
McPherson told New Times that the organization doesn’t take a position either way on the Vistra battery plant but does feel the measure has been falsely advertised.
“We have an initiative that is scaring people by telling them that they’re going to get this awful battery project, and if they just vote for A-24, [the city] won’t get it. When, in fact, [Vistra] probably will get it from the state,” McPherson said.
State intervention could be allowed under Assembly Bill 205, a 2022 bill allowing companies such as Vistra to bypass local governments and apply for large renewable energy project approval from the state or the California Coastal Commission instead.
If the battery plant could happen either way, she said the group would rather vote “no” on the measure so the project would be managed by the city.
McPherson also said that while Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation has envisioned the power plant site becoming public parks and trails, she can’t imagine any developers having the money to transform the land.
“Their campaign is simply based on fear and fantasy,” she said. Δ
Correction: This story was updated to clarify the specific parcel of land that measure A-24 applies to.
This article appears in Student Guide 2024.
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