On Monday, Jan. 14 the Nassau County Legislature voted to approve the takeover of the Glen Cove sewer facility as part of a countywide consolidation plan. The vote was 10-8, with legislators voting on party lines. GOP Minority Leader Peter J. Schmitt was absent for the vote.

Presiding Officer Legislator Diane Yatauro (D-18 LD) said, "The vote of the full legislature is a 'win-win' for the county, Glen Cove residents and the entire North Shore community. It is the first step in the county's efforts to consolidate government on many levels and will eventually lead to cost savings for all county taxpayers. As the new presiding officer, I was proud that this was the first vote of the new legislature." Leg. Yatauro added that, "This is what we promised we'd do, eliminate duplication of services."

She stated that the consolidation is environmentally sound, as "the action will protect the aquifers that supply drinking water and can lead to improvement of water quality in the Long Island Sound."

The consolidation will not result in any change in services for the city, including the continued operation by Severn Trent, stated the legislator. For the residents of Glen Cove, she said, the transfer is financially sound and will mean an immediate benefit of no sewer tax and a future benefit of 15 years without a sewer tax. She said that the county will benefit financially because in time, the sewer can be hooked up to neighboring communities and be run at full capacity.

Mayor Ralph V. Suozzi said, "This is the right thing to do. It is what the studies support, from Albany down to a local level." He added that consolidation of services is the direction in which much of the state government is headed.

The mayor explained that the Glen Cove Sewer Plant was always meant to be a regional operation, and was conceived as a facility for "the North Shore." However, he said, in the 1970s, two of the three large municipalities involved in the deal dropped out, leaving the City of Glen Cove with a facility large enough to handle eight million gallons of water a day. Glen Cove uses just two million and the plant has never fulfilled its potential. " Consolidation makes sense environmentally, operationally and financially," said Mayor Suozzi.

The consolidation of the sewer districts of Cedarhurst and Lawrence were also included in the legislature's vote.