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May 24, 2007
DDDB PRESS RELEASE: Forest City Ratner’s Atlantic Yards to Blame, in Part, For Looming Con Edison Record Rate Hike
During Project Approval State Said Atlantic Yards Would Not Significantly Impact Electrical Infrastructure
NEW YORK, NY— When your Con Edison electric bill goes up 17% to 36% you can thank Bruce Ratner and his Atlantic Yards project.
According to a NY1 news report about yesterday’s State Assembly hearing over a proposed Con Edison rate hike, it would be the largest rate hike Con Ed has ever proposed. And according to Con Ed officials the Atlantic Yards mega-project, is partly to blame. >From NY1’s report:
...Con Ed came before a State Assembly committee to explain the rate hike. Officials argued Wednesday the system is strapped and that massive projects like the Atlantic Yards in Brooklyn will burden the system even more...
(emphasis added)
“New Yorkers can thank Bruce Ratner and his ‘Atlantic Yards’ project, in part, for what appears to be a looming record Con Ed rate hike,” said Develop Don’t Destroy spokesman Daniel Goldstein. “While New York taxpayers are forced to subsidize Forest City Ratner’s project so the developer can make enormous profits, the taxpayers are forced to pay again with a huge electric bill increase. You can be sure that nobody will subsidize those new bills.”
“When the State studied this very issue last year, when it came to Atlantic Yards and the electrical grid, they said, basically, ‘don’t worry. No problem.’ Clearly they were wrong and misleading the public” Goldstein said.
While the rate hike made news today, the states’ Atlantic Yards Environmental Impact Statement (which is currently under litigation) approved last year by the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC), determined that there would be no significant impact from the project on electricity infrastructure. The “Infrastructure” chapter of the State’s environmental review concluded that:
The proposed project would increase demands on electricity and gas. However, relative to the capacity of these systems and the current levels of service within New York City, these increases in demand would be insignificant. Improvements are also proposed by Consolidated Edison and Keyspan with respect to the local electric and gas distribution grids that would improve service to the project site. In addition, new electrical and gas lines are proposed within the beds of streets that would be reconstructed as part of the proposed project. It is therefore concluded that the demands of the proposed project would not result in a significant impact on the supplies of electricity and gas in the region or the City as a whole, and with the proposed improvement to the distribution network, no impact would occur locally with respect to electrical or gas utilities. For these reasons, the proposed project is not expected to significantly adversely impact energy systems.
(emphasis added)
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Posted by lumi at May 24, 2007 8:28 PM