×

Councilman: NRG wants to ‘pay less’

“If we just go with this — I get it, we have no say in it — but if we just sit back and say nothing to the county IDA and just take it and they throw it and that’s it, we’re stuck with this like we were before.” First Ward Councilman Don Williams Jr.

At least one member of the Dunkirk Common Council feels the city is being “bent over a barrel” when it comes to potential changes in NRG Energy’s payment in lieu of taxes agreement.

First Ward Councilman Don Williams Jr. slammed the County of Chautauqua Industrial Development Agency for facilitating a new request in NRG’s PILOT agreement without offering the city a seat at the negotiating table. He stated he plans on making his opinion known during a public hearing today regarding the proposed new terms of the agreement.

“If we just go with this — I get it, we have no say in it — but if we just sit back and say nothing to the county IDA and just take it and they throw it and that’s it, we’re stuck with this like we were before,” he said. “I think we should be doing our best to ask for more.”

Third Ward Councilman Adelino Gonzalez and Councilman-at-Large Andy Woloszyn agreed with Williams in that the municipality should have been part of the discussions between NRG and the CCIDA.

According to a legal notice for the public hearing, NRG seeks to make “certain interim payments” over the course of its repowering project at the Dunkirk plant. Once the plant flips the switch on its three natural gas-fired units, payment under the existing PILOT agreement would resume.

NRG also feels that for each interim payment, it is entitled to a “partial year-for-year credit” to be applied to the PILOT payment following the completion of at least one unit conversion.

Mayor Willie Rosas noted members of the public may speak during the public hearing, but nothing can be done to change the outcome.

“So, we’re kind of hostages in that,” Williams remarked. “They know that they got us bent over a barrel and they’re using this to just pay less.”

Williams added the so-called interim payments do not come with a guarantee of employment/repowering or even a renewal of the current PILOT agreement, which is nearing the end of its 10-year period. He said it would be easier for the city to accept NRG’s request if the multi-billion-dollar corporation could offer better guarantees.

“Has anybody ever talked to them about trying to give us something that would benefit us, like maybe … free power to two of our biggest power-burning places, the water filtration (plant) and the wastewater treatment plant?” he inquired. “The worst thing they can do is say no.”

Rosas pointed out Williams was missing the bigger picture, namely NRG’s repowering.

“We’ve been fighting so long and hard to get a repowering there, so my understanding is that this is part of the repowering, this addendum to the PILOT agreement,” Rosas explained, noting he does not want any animosity between NRG and the city.

Williams countered by saying the city should represent its taxpayers by sending someone to the public hearing and speaking up.

“If they’re going to do something stupid along the line of pull out, I don’t think they’re going to pull out,” he added, stressing he is not against repowering. “I think this is something that they’re just holding over our head to get us all to agree. That’s my gut feeling. I think that the whole PILOT agreement is what had us in this situation … anyways.”

Rosas offered Williams the case of the Huntley plant in Tonawanda, which shut down; NRG now pays $600,000 in taxes, down from $6 million, according to Fiscal Affairs Officer Richard Halas.

“Then rip the Band-Aid off and … let’s get it developed into something else then,” Williams replied.

“You don’t mean that,” Rosas told him.

“What do we have to do?” Williams retorted. “We’re going to hold it over our head forever, the whole idea of, ‘Well, either you give us lower rates or we’re going to pull out.’ That’s what they’ve been doing for 20 years. So we keep giving them lower rates and in the meantime, we’re struggling and they’re pulling in $20 billion profits. So, who’s getting hurt?”

The public hearing takes place today at 1 p.m. in the SUNY Fredonia Technology Incubator, 214 Central Ave., Dunkirk.

Email: gfox@observertoday.com. Twitter: @gfoxnews

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

COMMENTS

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today