Thursday, October 1, 2026
Freeport Village's "diesel dinosaur" is officially extinct.
Gov. George Pataki and state Sen. Charles Fuschillo Jr. (R-Merrick) announced at a news conference last Thursday that Freeport has agreed to close Power Plant No. 2 and replace it with a clean-burning $50 million natural-gas plant.
The proclamation came on a bright, warm day at Plant No. 2 in the village's industrial park.
For more than three decades, the plant had sent diesel exhaust raining down on surrounding neighborhoods in Merrick and Freeport. During a more than yearlong investigation by the Merrick Herald, diesel exhaust was shown to be a probable carcinogen.
Fearing the exhaust might cause cancer, residents began decrying the plant in growing numbers last April, culminating in a protest march in June.
Ever since, residents have continued to follow the issue, attend public meetings and a hearing over the plant, and write letters to public officials, including the governor.
Pataki was smiling as he said last week, "To everyone, this is a
beautiful, sunny day — no more soot."
Closing Plant No. 2 will mean a "cleaner and healthier" environment for "the children of the 21st century," the governor said.
Pataki also acknowledged the efforts of Joseph Kralovich, president of the Old Lindenmere Civic Association, in shutting down the plant. Kralovich started the "Clean It Up or Close It Down" campaign last spring, organizing hundreds of South Shore residents.
Kralovich said the lion's share of credit for closing Plant No. 2 belongs with Fuschillo, whom he called a "civil servant of the highest caliber."
The civic president also said, "I appreciate everyone's efforts. If we work hard, this is what can happen."
Fuschillo, who led the political charge against the plant and was the first elected official to call for it to be shut down, thanked the governor repeatedly for his personal involvement in the issue and called Pataki a "friend to the environment."
Richard Kessel of Merrick, chairman of the Long Island Power Authority, said the governor first became involved in the issue last spring, after Kessel sent a package of Merrick Herald front-page stories to Pataki detailing the health dangers that Plant No. 2 might pose.
In a phone interview, Kessel said, "The Merrick Herald brought this issue to the forefront. Your reporting, no question, attracted our attention. The Merrick Herald's campaign influenced a lot of people, including the governor, to do the right thing."
Fuschillo and Kessel both said the governor applied pressure on the state Department of Environmental Conservation, Freeport and PPL Global to push through the shutdown agreement.
The deal will work as follows:
Freeport will immediately close Plant No. 2. From May this year through March 2003, LIPA will provide low-cost energy to Freeport to make up for loss of the plant. During this time, Freeport will keep its operating permit from the DEC, but will only run it in the event of a power outage, Kessel said.\
Meanwhile, PPL Global, formerly Pennsylvania Power and Light, will build two 44-megawatt gas generators next to Plant No. 2.
Once the generators are up and running in 2003, PPL will own one of the units and Freeport the other. The village will sell 10 megawatts of power to LIPA annually and keep the rest. LIPA will buy all 44 megawatts from the PPL generator.
The purchase-power agreement between LIPA and PPL was the final sticking point in negotiations to shut down Plant No. 2, Kessel said. In fact, he said, talks between LIPA and PPL carried on through 8:30 a.m. Thursday, only two hours before Pataki announced Plant No. 2 would be shut down.
During the news conference, Kessel also thanked Ed Grilli of Merrick, his chief of staff at LIPA. Kessel appointed Grilli to lead negotiations among the power authority, Freeport and PPL.
Grilli said the talks, which began last April, were tough. "It was a long and arduous process," he said. "All the pieces had to fit."
In an interview, Kessel also acknowledged Nassau County Legis. David
Denenberg (D-Merrick) and county Executive Thomas Suozzi for getting involved in the Plant No. 2 fight. Denenberg spoke out at several meetings and a public hearing and wrote numerous letters to the federal Environmental Protection Agency and DEC, calling for the plant to shutter.
Denenberg said, "I am grateful and proud of the accomplishments of the Old Lindenmere Civic Association and the citizens of Merrick and Freeport who refused to allow government to continue to ignore their health and safety. I am fortunate to have such an intelligent and active constituency, and I was pleased to support and be involved in such a worthwhile cause."
Freeport Mayor William Glacken, who only a year ago had refused to shut down Plant No. 2, said the agreement among the village, LIPA and PPL will ensure that Freeport will continue to provide inexpensive power for its resident-ratepayers. "With this agreement," he said, "Freeport Electric is well positioned to serve our residents and businesses today, this summer and for the next 10 to 15 years."
Caterina Kralovich, Joseph Kralovich's wife who stood by his side throughout the plant fight and helped organize the Clean It Up or Close It Down campaign, expressed astonishment that the plant will be shut down permanently. "This is just really hard to believe," she said. "I want to trust in what is going to be done. Hopefully, it will be shut down. It's just really hard to believe."
Vincent Greco, a Freeport civic leader who has fought Plant No. 2 since it opened, said he does not want to see any power plant in his backyard, as he believes Freeport does not need one. The New York Power Authority upstate can provide enough electricity for the village, he said.
However, the New York State Independent Service Operator, a non-profit regulatory agency, requires that a municipality like Freeport maintain enough electric generation capability on Long Island to meet all of its power needs.
In that case, Greco said of the new gas plant: "If it has to be, it has
to be a showpiece. It has to create no impact on the environment."
