Shelter Island Reporter Editorial: Acting with authority
It’s not often that a government acts quickly and decisively, but the Town Board deserves credit for doing both last Friday evening.
In a unanimous vote, the board voted 5-0 to ban electrical substations on Shelter Island. It’s important to note that the legislation doesn’t specify locations that are banned, but unequivocally states they will not be allowed anywhere on the Island.
The town resolution came just three days after PSEG officials made a detailed pitch to the board and residents, who packed the Town Hall meeting room, that a substation at the Old Highway Barn site on South Ferry Road was the best option for the community and the power company.
Absurd on its face — constructing an industrial facility in a residential neighborhood next to the Shelter Island Historical Society — the plan was rolled out three times by PSEG. Equally absurd was the power company’s plan to sweeten the deal by building a park around the substation complete with a scenic pond and a fire pit.
But to their credit, PSEG officials owned up to the fact that one reason to build a substation at that site is it would be cheaper than any other location.
With electrical use on the Island growing three percent annually, it’s necessary to have a reliable back up source of power, which either a substation or another electrical cable to the Island under the bay from the North Fork would provide. But a substation is now off the table and it’s back to the drawing board — literally — to plan for another run at an underwater cable project.
We compliment the board, especially Councilman Ed Brown who championed the cable project over the substation, and Supervisor Jim Dougherty, for marshaling his board into a unanimous vote.
There was one moment of head scratching by observers when Councilman Paul Shepherd said after the vote that he was “disturbed by the conclusion in that resolution that somehow a substation was not the best solution for Shelter Island.”
He noted that the site designated by PSEG was not right, but added he believes a substation is still the best solution for the Island’s power needs.
This raises a question of why Mr. Shepherd voted for a complete ban. He said he wanted to be on the record, but in a moment of having his cake and eating it, said he had “reservations” about the resolution he was voting for.
