BY PATRICK STACHNIAK | news@queensledger.com
MIDDLE VILLAGE — One of two sites proposed by the landlord of City Councilmember Phil Wong for relocating a planned battery storage facility is owned by a family member of his deputy chief of staff, according to public records, a fact which was not disclosed to the company behind the project.
Councilmember Wong and his office have been vocally opposed to the construction of the battery energy storage system (BESS) in Middle Village, owned by NineDot Energy, since he took office in January. In a statement earlier this month, Wong criticized the company for moving forward with construction at the current site of 64-30 69th Pl, which he argues poses safety concerns for PS/IS 128, a school across the street.
“[NineDot was] offered an opportunity months ago to relocate this project,” said Wong. “They should do the right thing, take that deal, and move this facility somewhere it belongs.”
During a meeting with NineDot representatives on February 19, Wong and his staff asked that the company speak with a landlord — the owner of the Councilmember’s district office — who offered to buy the 69th Pl property and arrange for the sale of two possible relocation sites: 46-46 Metropolitan Ave or 56-41 56th Terr.
Records show that 56-41 56th Terr was bought by Sandra Vaichunas, the mother-in-law of Wong’s deputy chief of staff Alicia Vaichunas, in 2020 for $5.75 million. The Clinton Hall Palace and its parking lot, which border the proposed site, are also owned by the Vaichunas family and are currently listed for sale at $20 million. A representative for NineDot indicated they were not yet sure whether that property would need to be purchased as well if the project were relocated.
When asked about the proposed site’s link to Vaichunas, Wong asserted that he was not involved in selecting the specific properties. “I asked the landlord of my office to recommend sites,” Wong told the Ledger. “I did not myself give those sites to NineDot.”
Yet Wong also did not notify NineDot of the parcel’s connection to his staffer. “We have secure homeowners, we have landlords that will offer vacant lots in the Brooklyn- Queens area border, right at the border, and for them to choose as an alternate site,” he said at a rally on February 26. According to a representative of NineDot, Wong’s office stated that the property would be sold at “market rate.”
“We have consistently opposed this site because it sits next to a school, a teachers’ center, a daycare, an animal hospital, a children’s play center, and residential homes,” noted Daniel Kurzyna, Wong’s chief of staff. “That is why we explored alternative locations. Any suggestion that those efforts were motivated by anything other than protecting our community is simply untrue.”
NineDot ultimately rejected the two proposals, outlining an array of logistical issues. The company told Wong’s office that it would not be feasible to connect either site to the local grid “due to a recent Con Edison policy change” requiring a new agreement to be signed that would potentially delay the project by at least a decade. The Metropolitan Ave site lies in a floodplain, further complicating a move, and both sites would serve different parts of the grid than the original project.
“NineDot had an exit ramp and several feasible alternate sites but chose greed instead,” said Wong, shortly after the rejection. “Shame on them.”
But Wong has revived his calls for relocation in recent weeks, after a string of altercations with NineDot contractors at the current worksite.
On July 1, Wong and several staffers attempted to record footage of the construction. That evening, the DOB issued a stop work order, noting that the contractors’ use of an excavator was “out of scope” for their permits.
Wong’s team returned on July 2, alleging that the contractors were continuing to work illegally; in a statement, NineDot claimed they were securing the worksite, where there was still an open pit. According to a police report, a staffer and contractor “pulled on each other before falling to the ground” while arguing. Wong accused the contractor of using a slur and called for punitive action, but no arrests have been made.
