LACEY, NJ — Developers are planning an electrical substation in Lacey Township for a New Jersey offshore wind project.

The purpose of the substation, which will be built in a vacant area on the former Oyster Creek power plant property, is to receive power from the offshore wind project Ocean Wind 1 off the coast of Ocean City. The substation will connect the offshore farm to the energy grid on land.

The substation will be located on the south side of Discharge Drive, in an area empty except for a small one-story warehouse building, the developers of the project told the Lacey Township Planning Board at a recent meeting.

It will be an unmanned facility except for maintenance crews who will come once a week. The substation will be monitored offsite and has two levels of fencing to protect it.

Project planners and engineers said that the substation would be "inherently beneficial," offering no aesthetic impact and fences to discourage people from coming, as they asked for variances on the setback and landscaping of the lot.

It also serves to further New Jersey's energy goal, developers said.

The application was approved with variances by all Planning Board members except for James LeTellier, who said he would not vote for it until the impact of the sound on animals in the area was known.

"I'm just concerned about the impact," he said. "I'm not against it. I'm not for it. But I won't vote until I see some sort of study count with the negative impact on our national bird and the rest of the wildlife."

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