With its purchase last month of a large tract of commercial property on New England Avenue west of Codman Square for a potential infrastructure site, Eversource continued on its mission of convening neighbors in Dorchester and Mattapan this fall to discuss how to address future needs for the neighborhood’s overtaxed electrical grid and how best to meet state-mandated clean energy goals by 2050.

The utility purchased 181-191 New England Ave., now home to several auto repair shops, in late October for $5.1 million, hoping in the end to combine that with land it already owns across the street for electrical grid expansion. Meanwhile, on the border of Mattapan along Cummins Highway, Eversource has begun speaking to residents about using a large tract of land it already owns behind Oak Lawn Cemetery for similar needs.

According to an Eversource spokesman, the plans taking root now are part of a very long-term process to conform to their Electric System Modernization Plan (ESMP) filed with the state in September. That plan sets a framework to meet current and future demand for electricity – particularly with so many new usages like heat pumps and electric vehicles – and suggests preliminary ways on how to do that.

A second piece of the ESMP is to put in place things like substations, electric battery storage, and solar arrays to meet state-mandates on decarbonization by 2050.

“As we look to unlock the benefits of clean energy equitably for all of our customers, there will be an essential need for system upgrades and new electric infrastructure in many, if not all, areas of Boston,” wrote the spokesman. “We currently do not have concrete plans for our properties in Dorchester, but we recognize that some may be needed for clean electric infrastructure such as substations or battery storage systems, which is precisely why we are having conversations with neighborhood and community groups about the city’s needs in the coming years.”

Neighbors from the Canterbury and Cummins Highway area noted they had been approached by Eversource to organize ongoing working groups, according to neighborhood sources.

According to the Eversource filing, the existing nearby substation serving parts of Dorchester, Mattapan, and Hyde Park is at 100 percent capacity and will be overloaded by 2030. The plan for the 18-acre property behind the cemetery is to deploy a battery energy storage system (BESS) there to temporarily resolve the overload issues until a new substation can be built in the long term. It is also seen as a demonstration site for BESS technology, the report noted.

“The project could demonstrate new BESS design/application ideas by connecting BESS system to various system voltage levels; moving energy from one substation to the other when two systems cannot be directly connected; and testing partial discharging of the BESS while the remaining portion is charging with grid,” it read.

Meanwhile, members of the Talbot Norfolk Triangle group, which includes New England Avenue, confirmed they had been approached by the utility, but said it was too early to comment.

Plans detailed in the filing speak of a Dorchester substation that could power 147,000 electric vehicles or 30,000 residential heat pumps, which would take the stress load off the current Hyde Park substation. The grid in the Dorchester and Mattapan areas near New England Avenue are at 90 percent capacity now, according to the report.

Eversource said it was reaching out to environmental justice communities like Dorchester and Mattapan first to hear their thoughts on expanding the grid and the best way to do that on the properties identified. They also want to get feedback on their suggested plans in the ESMP.

“As our plans develop, our goal is to inform our customers early on in the process, include our communities in shaping our plans, and foster an open dialogue,” wrote the spokesman. “We believe that our environmental justice communities deserve a seat at the table to help us best understand their needs as we build this clean energy future together.”

Eversource also said it would be evaluating all their properties for “potential sites for the new infrastructure that will be necessary to meet those goals.”