By Doug Miller
"We all know that the goal of reducing energy costs in the Northeast is important to our residents," said City Council President Leonard G. Remo. "However, a liquefied natural gas terminal built on a man-made island in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, in proximity to our barrier islands, may not be the best solution to this problem. At 13.5 miles off the coast, which may put this island in international waters, the potential for jurisdictional oversight and emergency response may come into question, especially with the unpredictable nature of the Atlantic storm season. Until there is further discussion on this issue, it is very difficult to say that this project would be in the best interest of the residents of the City of Long Beach."
Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg, who has represented Long Beach on the Environmental Conservation Committee for 17 years, was more blunt. "If God wanted another island south of Long Beach, he would have put it there," he said on Monday, calling on his cell phone from the floor of the Assembly. "We're going to give them the fight of their lives."
Over the years, Weisenberg has been a vocal opponent of virtually any project of any kind that would in any way impact the beaches, which has been a source of frustration to his colleagues on both sides of the aisle.
What was particularly galling to Weisenberg, however, wasn't that he had to read about the project in Friday's papers, but that he was among the last in the Assembly to know. "[Suffolk Republican] Bob Sweeney came up to me and asked about it," Weisenberg said. "I said 'How did you know?'"
According to the Web site of Morgan Joseph, a New York City-based investment bank, Atlantic Sea Island Group LLC raised $10 million through private equity placement last September. Exactly how much more was raised by the group was not disclosed.
The group has hired the public relations heavyweights Rubenstein Associates, whose client list over the years has included the Yankees, Michael Jackson and the British royal family. The Rubenstein spokesman on this project, Gary Lewi, said he had invited state and local officials and every media outlet to the initial press announcement - down to the "lowest common denominator" - and had no idea why the city, Weisenberg and the Herald were not invited.
According to the company's statement, Safe Harbor Energy will enter the federal regulatory process this spring under the authority of the Coast Guard and the Maritime Administration, which includes compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. The group hopes to begin operations in 2010.
"The senior management team has decades of experience in development of major energy and marine projects around the world," according to the company.
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