Considering battery storage on your Riverside County land?

Confirm who reviews your property and the proposed routes

Use the parcel number and actual location to establish whether the site is in a city or the unincorporated county. The county’s planning FAQ explains how parcel zoning, the General Plan and applicable community plans can be checked. A Riverside mailing address alone does not identify the land-use authority.

Have the developer identify the authority for the equipment area, entrance and electrical route. A proposal may need rights or review beyond the parcel you would lease. Ask to see those routes while there is still room to change the layout.

The county’s historical Sapphire solar-and-storage page illustrates this distinction: it describes a private project site and supporting routes across federal land, with county applications and a separate federal right-of-way process. That particular proposal is not a permit checklist for every battery site, and its posted environmental-review dates are from 2024.

Ask which approvals the company expects to seek for your proposal, which are still uncertain and whether a change in zoning or another land-use action is being considered. A business license, nearby energy project or existing power line does not settle those questions.

Reference: Riverside County Planning: parcel zoning, land-use permits and easement questions · Riverside County: Sapphire solar-and-storage project description and historical environmental review

Read the owner signature form before giving application authority

The posted development application process combines a general application, an applicant/property-owner signature form and the supplement for the requested action. Ask for the complete set, with the actual proposal and supporting drawings, rather than a signature page on its own.

The county’s signature form distinguishes the applicant from the property owner. It says most applications require owner signatures and gives express exceptions, including a request for pre-application review. Have the company and county confirm what the particular request needs.

The owner section certifies information, gives application authority and acknowledges county personnel’s ability to enter for examinations and surveys under the stated conditions. Read what you are authorizing, who is making the submission and how the plans describe your land.

If the property is held by a company, partnership or trust, the form calls for documentation showing signing authority. Resolve that before someone signs on behalf of all owners. Keep a copy of the application, attachments and the version actually submitted.

Permission for an agreed site visit, a county application signature and an option or lease serve different purposes. Discuss each step separately so you know what the company can do and what remains subject to your agreement.

Reference: Riverside County Planning: development applications and current form links · Riverside County: applicant and property-owner signature form, revised February 14, 2024

Ask how application expenses and approval challenges will be covered

The applicant portion of the posted form describes an initial deposit and further payments as processing costs are incurred. The deposit is not presented as a fixed price for completing review. Ask the company who is funding studies, county charges and additional deposits.

The owner portion also says the owner becomes liable for county costs if the applicant does not reimburse them. Do not assume that naming the developer as applicant removes this responsibility. Have the proposed agreement explain how the company will cover its project costs and what happens if it stops work or fails to pay.

The form includes a defense and indemnification agreement for proceedings challenging listed county approvals and associated environmental documents. Before signing, have your adviser explain that provision and the protection the company is offering for those expenses.

Deposit statements and requests are directed to the applicant under the form. Agree how you will receive updates, outstanding-cost information and notice of changes. You should not have to learn about a stalled application only when a bill reaches you.

The form also says assignment requires county written consent and that outstanding costs must be paid before consent. If the developer expects to transfer the project, discuss both the county application and the promises made to you. A private agreement should address responsibility without claiming it cancels obligations to the county.

Reference: Riverside County: applicant and property-owner signature form, revised February 14, 2024

Use preliminary review to identify questions, not promise approval

The posted request describes pre-application review as an optional way to discuss a proposal’s standards and constraints before a full application. It is a formal request with materials and deposit-based fees, rather than a free assurance that a site will be approved.

Its instructions require a general application, the review request and a clear exhibit. The category and exhibit matrices vary with the proposed actions. Have the county confirm the appropriate category and materials; this guide does not assign a category to an unspecified battery project.

The exhibit requirements address such matters as parcel identification, existing and proposed uses, structures, access, off-site rights, topography, flood information and water quality as applicable. A useful drawing lets reviewers see the complete proposal instead of only the battery containers.

The instructions say the resulting letter can identify applications, studies, plans, fees, environmental issues, design concerns and changes needed before an approval recommendation. They expressly say the letter is not project approval.

If the company proposes this step, ask what it needs to learn, who prepares and pays for the request, and how the findings will affect the option period or layout. You do not need to obtain a paid county preliminary review before contacting Sunland about your property.

Reference: Riverside County: request for pre-application review, revised May 30, 2024 · Riverside County: pre-application review filing instructions, revised October 12, 2023 · Riverside County: applicant and property-owner signature form, revised February 14, 2024

Make sure the plan covers the land you will keep using

Show the developer the parts of the property you need for a home, farming, deliveries, wells or other uses. Ask it to mark the equipment area, construction space, entrance, internal roads and electrical route on the same drawing.

The county’s preliminary-review exhibit instructions include access and circulation, existing and proposed structures, and off-site rights where applicable. Discuss shared entrances and routes that cross retained land. Explain what must stay accessible during construction and operation.

Existing easements also matter. The county FAQ describes them as limited rights to use land and says development cannot infringe on existing access easements. Have the property records and actual route reviewed; an informal path or a line on a drawing does not by itself grant the rights a project needs.

Ask how drainage, grading, noise and emergency access will be reviewed as the layout develops. Preliminary-review instructions identify studies and design concerns that may be raised, but they do not establish a completed technical assessment of your property.

Finally, keep the electrical connection question separate. The county land-use paperwork and an available route do not establish utility permission or capacity for the proposed battery to charge and discharge. Ask what connection review has occurred and what rights or studies remain.

Reference: Riverside County Planning: parcel zoning, land-use permits and easement questions · Riverside County: pre-application review filing instructions, revised October 12, 2023 · Riverside County: Sapphire solar-and-storage project description and historical environmental review

Send the location and the questions that matter to you

Use the form on this page to send Sunland your contact details and the location of the land. A parcel number, address or description using nearby roads can help begin the discussion. Tell us whether you would consider a lease, a sale or part of the property.

Include known restrictions, shared access, an existing lease or any use you want to preserve. You do not need a finished project design, a new survey or a county application to ask about the property.

We can discuss the possible area and the questions a proposal would need to resolve. An inquiry does not authorize an application, a site visit or construction, and it does not commit you to an option or lease. Those permissions and terms would be handled separately.

Reference: Riverside County Planning: development applications and current form links · Riverside County: applicant and property-owner signature form, revised February 14, 2024