The Town of Huntington announced earlier this week that they reached a settlement agreement with KeySpan on the Proposed Spagnoli Road Energy Center. According to the Town of Huntington, concessions included in the agreement will greatly benefit all who live and work in the town. Many local residents disagree and they expressed their concern at a Wednesday press conference.

According to the South Huntington Alliance for Responsible Energy Development (SHARED), a business alliance opposing the KeySpan proposal, the Town of Huntington reversed their position taken in sworn statements arguing that the Town of Huntington's zoning and noise ordinances are not unreasonably restrictive and should not be overturned by New York State. Many residents have been speaking out about this proposed plant and feel slighted by Huntington's town board.

"As a resident of the Town of Oyster Bay, I am very disappointed and upset that [the Town of Huntington] finally decided to side with KeySpan and support the project," said Lisa Schrank, a resident of Old Bethpage and LIVES Public Information Officer. "I feel that the board was very quiet about it for the last month and not saying which way they were going to go. All of a sudden, they turn up with this 70-page report and agreement and they never let the public put any input into this. They gave us a false sense of security that they were going to really listen to all sides of the issue and they sold out to KeySpan."

Attorneys for the town announced the agreement on the first day of testimony in the Article X siting proceedings in front of the New York Public Service Commission for the proposed 250 mega-watt power plant. According to SHARED, the same attorneys for the town had previously filed sworn statements arguing that the Town's zoning and noise ordinances, which the proposed plant would violate, were not unreasonably restrictive and should not be overturned by the state. But in a reversal that caught many by surprise, they withdrew the previous testimony and said they could not or would not defend the town's zoning laws.

"This attempt to erase past history and totally reverse their previous defense of the town's zoning laws is as embarrassing as it is cynical - and consistent with the behind closed doors pattern from day one that has allowed both KeySpan and town officials to avoid public accountability," said Mark Schwartz, executive director and general counsel of SHARED.

The Town of Huntington board made its unanimous decision to negotiate rather than move forward with a lengthy and expensive process, knowing that no municipality has won a favorable decision from the siting board of the New York State Service Commission. The Article X process was established to allow the state to override local zoning. While not endorsing the plant proposal, Town of Huntington board members stated the settlement was negotiated in the best interests of Town of Huntington residents.

"We knew that moving forward with the Article X process would be futile and very expensive," said Town of Huntington Supervisor Frank Petrone. "The board decided to sit down and negotiate with KeySpan. I believe that when the residents are informed of the concessions that we will receive from KeySpan, they will agree that the town board made a wise decision."

Bonnie Habyan, a spokesperson for KeySpan said, "The Town of Huntington's support of this project is really important. We think it offers a lot of positives including it contributes to the economic base of the area and it also provides dependable and reliable clean power for the region."

According to a press release issued by the Town of Huntington, under the settlement, KeySpan agreed to significantly reduce air emissions by converting a unit at the Northport Power Plant to a combination of natural gas and residual oil. In addition, the Spagnoli Road Energy Center will allow KeySpan to undertake upgrades at other facilities. KeySpan is under no regulatory obligation to reduce emissions at Northport and therefore the town of Huntington made this concession a priority.

According to SHARED, the impression that the Town of Huntington and KeySpan gave at the hearings was that KeySpan will convert the generating unit to natural gas from oil, but the agreement actually states that KeySpan will make half of the burners at Northport "dual-fired" by installing natural gas capability rather than converting to gas. The measure is a shift from Keyspan's earlier claims made in documents filed with New York State that it is too costly to build a new facility at Northport using natural gas. "This is another example of Keyspan's convenient non-accountability," said Schwartz.

A second concession that will also benefit air quality and the environment, according to the town of Huntington, is the conversion of town of Huntington-owned vehicles to natural gas. KeySpan will assist the town and commit $200,000 for purchasing town vehicles that will operate on natural gas instead of gasoline. Fueling of vehicles will take place at a KeySpan facility in Huntington.

"With these first two concessions alone, Huntington will be on the cutting edge of efforts to reduce air pollution and to improve our environment," said Town of Huntington Councilman Mark Cuthbertson.

An economic power incentive for the Route 110 corridor will encourage the development of the biotechnology and technology sector. KeySpan will provide a discount in the cost of electrical power to businesses in the Route 110 corridor in the Town of Huntington to enhance the Town's economic development.

Al Berg, CEO of Marchon Eyewear, the third largest distributor of eyewear in the world and one of Long Island's largest employers, says the agreement sends a negative message to area businesses. "The town's refusal to defend their own zoning is a slap in the face to existing businesses that comply with Huntington's rigorous zoning laws. Many companies have spent millions of dollars to comply with those laws. Why does KeySpan get this special treatment?"

According to Schrank, a 580-mega-watt power plant was approved in Yaphank. "This should make the proposed Spagnoli plant obsolete," she said. "That project is a year ahead of Spagnoli. That is another reason that this should not be approved. The power is needed out east more."

The Article X proceeding is still continuing and LIVES entered testimony from their experts regarding the zoning laws. "It is a sad day that elected representatives would turn their backs on the public like this," said Schwartz. "KeySpan just wanted to get their deal done and no matter what they say, ratepayers are going to foot the bill."