In late 2023, FPL Energy Cape, LLC (FPL) approached the City with a proposal to install an additional 40,000 gallons of “above-ground” fuel oil storage at FPL’s 2 Ocean Street stand-by power generation facility. The need for additional fuel storage is due to the regional electricity grid operator’s notice to FPL that it would have to have enough on-site fuel storage to run for a full 12 hours without resupply in order to qualify as a black start facility. Black start facilities are power generation facilities that are capable of re-energizing the electrical grid in the event of a blackout. In reviewing the proposal, the City’s Code Enforcement Officer (CEO) determined that the property was not exempt from a City ordinance prohibiting new above-ground storage tanks greater than 25,000. The CEO determined that FPL required a waiver from the City Council, as allowed by the ordinance, in order to proceed with the project. FPL thus pursued two courses of action in response to the CEO’s determination: 1) they appealed the CEO’s determination that they were not exempt from the prohibitions of the ordinance on installing new fuel stage capacity because the facility had prior fuel storage on site in excess of 40,000 gallons (the appeal was to be heard by the Board of Appeals), and 2) they requested a waiver from the City Council.
The Board of Appeals process was placed on hold in order to let the City Council determine if a waiver was warranted. The Council held public hearings on February 6, February 20, and March 19 on the matter, and voted to deny the waiver request. On March 25, the South Portland Board of Appeals (BOA) unanimously voted to grant the appeal, finding that the CEO’s determination that FPL was not exempt for the provisions of the applicable ordinance was incorrect. The BOA found there was credible evidence to support that the FPL property was actively used for fuel storage prior to the effective date of the ordinance and it was therefore exempt from the prohibition on new large above-ground fuel storage tanks, as outlined in the zoning ordinance. The BOA decision allows FPL Energy Cape to submit an application to the Planning Board for Site Plan approval to construct 40,000 gallons of fuel storage tanks. A Site Plan application has not yet been received by the City. For more information on the status of a Site Plan application, and to access materials when they are submitted, please utilize the City’s Active Planning Projects Map tool, available online on the Planning Land Use Maps & Regulations page.