Greater Napanee council hears of Guitars N' Cars recap, another proposed BESS

The Town of Greater Napanee Council met for its regular council meeting on Nov. 10. From a couple of informative deputations to approval of a battery energy storage facility, and more, council had much to mull over.

First to speak at the horseshoe was Tiffany Lloyd of Greater Napanee Connect. GNC is a volunteer-driven, community-enrichment organization that recently revived a community favourite event, Guitars n’ Cars.

Speaking of the success of this event, Lloyd described it as being a good example of “what true community collaboration looks like.”

“After years wherein pieces of the puzzle didn’t always line up, we are now on the same page with this event, and it shows,” she said.

A conservative estimate from various metrics suggested Napanee welcomed 5,000 visitors to the downtown core for Guitars n’ Cars.

“Based on standard same-day visitor spending, that is over $300,000 in direct economic impact,” stated Lloyd. “This is reflected by market vendors selling out, restaurant line-ups, classic cars parked at local hotels, etc.”

In addition to attracting a sizeable number of visitors, the event raised $5,500 for local charities, including Napanee Fire and Rescue, Toys for Kids, the Napanee Legion, and the Lennox and Addington County General Hospital Foundation. 

While Lloyd points to a large number of vehicles registered for the event-335, to be exact-she noted she expects the number to actually be well over 400.

Participants came from near and far, with many representing Greater Napanee, and others hailing from Belleville, Kingston, Trenton, Picton, and other areas in Ontario or Quebec.

Again, Lloyd pointed to the greater communication between GNC and the municipality as being paramount to this event’s success. She added that the municipality was receptive to feedback and made necessary changes to ensure a successful event.

GNC has not even been around for one year, yet can count several successful, community-oriented events among their successes. These include the Pulling Together fire-truck pull, and now Guitars n’ Cars.

“Next up is the Christmas Countdown to keep holiday spending local,” said Lloyd. “With this, they are partnering with local businesses to bring people through the door, with shoppers eligible to win thousands of dollars in prizes.”

In closing, Lloyd expressed thanks to the Napanee Valley Cruisers.

“I am not a car expert, but Steven and Deb Lowry are,” said Lloyd. “This event would not be possible without them.”

The next Guitars n’ Cars event is currently scheduled for Sept. 26, 2026.

“I think this event shows who we are as a municipality,” said mayor Terry Richardson. “This was absolutely marvellous work done by you and your team.”

-During their meeting, council heard another, informative deputation from representatives of CarbonFree Group. This group is entering a bid in the Independent Electricity Operator System’s procurement bid, with a deadline of Dec. 18, 2025.

Doug Deeks, Vice President of Project Development, and Maged Sami, Vice President of Engineering and Special Projects, represented the group.

“I know you’ve had other BESS projects proposed to you, and ours isn’t terribly dissimilar,” began Deeks. 

In fact, council has received four BESS proposals since 2023.

“CarbonFree is an Ontario-based, privately held company that works to develop energy projects,” said Deeks. “We have worked in the United States, and recently in Chile.”

So far, according to their presentation, Carbon Free has developed over 400 megawatts of solar projects with Indigenous partners in Ontario 

“We’ve been working hard,” Deeks stated. “We’ve recently produced two solar projects for the IESO’s procurement.” 

The exact location of the proposed BESS would be down River Road and north of the transmission line in Ward 2. The facility would be set back 700 metres from the nearest residences at River Road.

Detailing their engagement strategy, Deeks noted they are currently slated to host an open house on Nov. 26 and are actively engaged in door-knocking.

Although there are risks associated with any BESS, as outlined in this and previous BESS proposal presentations, Deeks pointed to several community benefits from this particular project.

These benefits include a community benefit fund, local tax revenue, local contractor opportunities, consistency with municipal energy/climate goals/official plan policies, and contributing to Ontario grid reliability and local distribution system resilience.

Councillor Bill Martin asked for a comment on common concerns brought forward by residents when faced with a BESS project nearby.

“Your BESS will be sort of in a residential area. People are always concerned about noise, water pollution, and light pollution,” said Martin. “I’d like you to comment on those.”

Sami made sure to note that until preliminary studies are completed, “we won’t know what things like noise impact will be.”

“At a 700 metre setback, it’s a drop below 20 decibels,” he added.

With regards to light pollution, Sami stated direction from staff will be crucial.

“We have heard concerns about water brought up several times,” said Sami. “There’s really no risk of groundwater pollution from the site itself. There are no liquids within the cells. That’s not to say there isn’t a risk of some type of disaster.”

Sami added that developing the BESS along an existing road will decrease the incidence of heavy equipment, thereby reducing the risk of contamination to groundwater.

“We are still over two years away from construction,” Deeks stated.

With two years to go before breaking ground, and only about a month until the bid deadline,  councillor Michael Schenk expressed caution, noting he would “wait until all facts are presented.”

In other news, council provided municipal support for Atura’s Phase 2 BESS. 

The site is part of the Ontario Power Generation property and would be an expansion of their Phase 1 BESS. This particular project would be 300 MW, if approved by the IESO. If awarded a contract, it should be operational by 2029/2030.

LJI Reporter for the Napanee Beaver