Power Plant For Brooklyn Loses a Vote

A proposal to build an underground steam and electrical power plant on the Brooklyn waterfront may be running out of energy.

The New York State siting board, comprising panelists from several state agencies, recently ruled in opposition to TransGas Energy's application to build a large, 1,100-megawatt facility on the Bayside Fuel Oil Depot site in Greenpoint. This follows a recommendation two years ago by two state judges that the application be dismissed.

The owner of TransGas, Adam Victor, said he would appeal the ruling. "We think we are going to be successful on getting a rehearing based on pointing out the flaw in their logic," he said

Mr. Victor, who has been waging a persistent campaign to get approval for the plant, said he believes the siting board ignored the intent of Article 10, a state law designed to give the ultimate authority on power plant siting to an independent commission to lessen the influence of local politicians on decisions about the unpopular facilities, and to streamline the approval process.

The TransGas application was the last remaining New York project proposed under Article 10, which expired in 2003. A growing number of business and real estate groups are advocating a reconstitution of the law to help cope with what many see as a looming electricity shortage in New York City.

The Bloomberg administration has aggressively opposed the power plant, saying it conflicts with the city's plans for a revitalized Brooklyn that would complement a recently rezoned swath of Greenpoint/Williamsburg, where the city envisions denser commercial and residential development.