August 20, 2006
Call it the War in the Woods. Or perhaps the Brawl in the Barrens.
A cable TV show last weekend that began as a lovefest, with Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy thanking pine-barrens champion Richard Amper for helping reform the process for buying open space, soured badly by the end.
"This is an extremist and that's the problem," an irate Levy said of Amper. "We need balance, not extremism."
Of course, Levy's attack came only after Amper, the executive director of the Long Island Pines Barrens Society, intimated that the county executive was in the thrall of developers who gave him $35,000 in campaign donations in the past three months. He also chastised Levy for "riding the fence ... at a time when he needs to triple the amount of land saved for open space."
Off the air, things only got worse. Amper, later recounting the moment, said Levy poked his finger at his face and said, "You're dead. Our relationship is over and don't bother to ever call my office again." Levy maintains he made no mention of Amper's mortality, but acknowledged, "I told him I don't think he'll be able to have the same kind of relationship ... when he talks this kind of nonsense."
Such blowtorch talk is nothing new for either Levy, arguably Long Island's most popular politician, or Amper, who has been the chief mouthpiece for the region's biggest motherhood issue, which is land preservation. Neither lacks self-esteem, each has utter confidence he can spin the public his way, and it is rare for either to back down. "I don't want to get between those two gorillas," said one environmental leader who did not wish to be identified.
At issue is the latest environmental campaign, dubbed "Last Stand," to preserve half of the remaining 70,000 acres of Suffolk's open space and farmland. Backers say that what's left of Long Island will be built out by 2015, which means the decision to buy up land must be made in the next three to four years. Builders, meanwhile, fear that further public purchases will only drive up the land costs, making new homes even less affordable.
Levy says Amper frustrates many officials who are trying to do the right thing. "He's always throwing bombs and nothing is ever enough," he said, adding Amper "goes so over the top, he loses his credibility."
The county executive says he revived the county's land program, which had been on "life support" at the end of the administration of his predecessor Robert Gaffney after a scandal in which his top real estate aide was working for a developer who sold land to the county at allegedly inflated prices.
In the past 2 1/2 years, Levy said the county has created a new department to handle land purchases; put an environmentalist in charge, and better than doubled the acreage Gaffney bought -- more than 2,500 acres, three times the size of Central Park. He also put $50-million in county money toward a Legacy Fund for further purchases. Other environmentalists have recognized his accomplishments and the New York League of Conservation Voters honored him at a fundraiser in Baiting Hollow Saturday. "We're terrific fans of Mr. Levy," said Marcia Bystryn, the group's executive director.
Levy has done good, Amper said, but he insisted the comparison with the last administration is skewed. "It's like a relief agency coming in and saying they could do better than FEMA after Hurricane Katrina," he said.
Amper says Levy needs to fill a half dozen vacancies in the real estate department, dramatically ramp up to meet the 35,000 acre goal, and make a commitment to extend the quarter cent sales tax to the year 2030, 10 years beyond the expiration date so that the county can borrow against it.
Levy, meanwhile, said he is open to a possible sale tax extension, though he noted the problem is not money, but finding enough willing sellers. He also chided Amper for criticizing his donations from developers when the pine barrens group also takes money from builders such as Jan Burman and Reckson Associates.
Others, such as Kevin McDonald of the Nature Conservancy, say Amper may be provocative, but remains valuable to the cause and Levy, while "fiscally conservative," is also strong on the environment. He expects the rift to soon pass over. "If I had a dime for every official that Dick Amper has angered, I'd have enough money to buy all the open space myself," he said.
It appears the Long Island Pine Barrens Society and the Suffolk County Executive have had a falling out on a recent TV debate show. The chair of the Pine Barrens Society, Dick Amper, criticized Suffolk's County Executive for not buying enough land.
Now even though I am against the developments that have been going on in the pines here (McMansions, strip malls), the Pine Barrens Society is often not realistic in their goals. Having the government buy land does not get to the ROOT of the problem. The root being that the towns need to zone out, that is prohibit, developers from building certain projects that will have a negative impact on the environment.
I strongly disagree with the Pine Barrens Society on it's stance since it's inception, on opposing any and all energy projects here on Long Island. It started in the 1980s with Shoreham. LILCO (now LIPA) was constructing a Nuclear power station in Shoreham. This plant would have been able to supply 1000MW of power. The idea was to meet future demand. The plant was finished, only to be shut down without producing one MW of power. The Pine Barrens Society contended that the nuclear plant was going to damage the groundwater, even though it was encased in feet and feet of re-inforced concrete. They further added the fuels of fear and the plant was de-comissioned. But the ratepayers still had to pay for it. It's one of the reasons we have the highest electric rates in the nation, as well as a tight power supply. So tight in fact, that LIPA uses dirty diesel generators, which spew out clouds of soot, at many of it's substations. Not to mention the dirty plants in Northport and Port Jeff which burn expensive oil. LILCO was actually very smart, and the Shoreham (and the Jamesport, never built) nuclear power plants would have solved LI's power crisis and our rates would have been 60% of what they are today.
So that's a pretty good reason why although I am an avid lover of the pines, I am not a member of the Long Island Pine Barrens Society. They also oppose Broadwater, a natural gas link that would lower our energy costs. I believe the McMansions and strip malls that have been built here have caused much more harm to the pine barrens than Shoreham ever would have. Everytime it rains on LI tehy have to shut beaches because of contaminated stormwater runoff. Maybe if the Pine Barrens Society picked the right battles, we would have less McMansions and malls, cheaper power, and cleaner air and water.
Call it the War in the Woods. Or perhaps the Brawl in the Barrens.
A cable TV show last weekend that began as a lovefest, with Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy thanking pine-barrens champion Richard Amper for helping reform the process for buying open space, soured badly by the end.
"This is an extremist and that's the problem," an irate Levy said of Amper. "We need balance, not extremism."
Of course, Levy's attack came only after Amper, the executive director of the Long Island Pines Barrens Society, intimated that the county executive was in the thrall of developers who gave him $35,000 in campaign donations in the past three months. He also chastised Levy for "riding the fence ... at a time when he needs to triple the amount of land saved for open space."
Off the air, things only got worse. Amper, later recounting the moment, said Levy poked his finger at his face and said, "You're dead. Our relationship is over and don't bother to ever call my office again." Levy maintains he made no mention of Amper's mortality, but acknowledged, "I told him I don't think he'll be able to have the same kind of relationship ... when he talks this kind of nonsense."
Such blowtorch talk is nothing new for either Levy, arguably Long Island's most popular politician, or Amper, who has been the chief mouthpiece for the region's biggest motherhood issue, which is land preservation. Neither lacks self-esteem, each has utter confidence he can spin the public his way, and it is rare for either to back down. "I don't want to get between those two gorillas," said one environmental leader who did not wish to be identified.
At issue is the latest environmental campaign, dubbed "Last Stand," to preserve half of the remaining 70,000 acres of Suffolk's open space and farmland. Backers say that what's left of Long Island will be built out by 2015, which means the decision to buy up land must be made in the next three to four years. Builders, meanwhile, fear that further public purchases will only drive up the land costs, making new homes even less affordable.
Levy says Amper frustrates many officials who are trying to do the right thing. "He's always throwing bombs and nothing is ever enough," he said, adding Amper "goes so over the top, he loses his credibility."
The county executive says he revived the county's land program, which had been on "life support" at the end of the administration of his predecessor Robert Gaffney after a scandal in which his top real estate aide was working for a developer who sold land to the county at allegedly inflated prices.
In the past 2 1/2 years, Levy said the county has created a new department to handle land purchases; put an environmentalist in charge, and better than doubled the acreage Gaffney bought -- more than 2,500 acres, three times the size of Central Park. He also put $50-million in county money toward a Legacy Fund for further purchases. Other environmentalists have recognized his accomplishments and the New York League of Conservation Voters honored him at a fundraiser in Baiting Hollow Saturday. "We're terrific fans of Mr. Levy," said Marcia Bystryn, the group's executive director.
Levy has done good, Amper said, but he insisted the comparison with the last administration is skewed. "It's like a relief agency coming in and saying they could do better than FEMA after Hurricane Katrina," he said.
Amper says Levy needs to fill a half dozen vacancies in the real estate department, dramatically ramp up to meet the 35,000 acre goal, and make a commitment to extend the quarter cent sales tax to the year 2030, 10 years beyond the expiration date so that the county can borrow against it.
Levy, meanwhile, said he is open to a possible sale tax extension, though he noted the problem is not money, but finding enough willing sellers. He also chided Amper for criticizing his donations from developers when the pine barrens group also takes money from builders such as Jan Burman and Reckson Associates.
Others, such as Kevin McDonald of the Nature Conservancy, say Amper may be provocative, but remains valuable to the cause and Levy, while "fiscally conservative," is also strong on the environment. He expects the rift to soon pass over. "If I had a dime for every official that Dick Amper has angered, I'd have enough money to buy all the open space myself," he said.
It appears the Long Island Pine Barrens Society and the Suffolk County Executive have had a falling out on a recent TV debate show. The chair of the Pine Barrens Society, Dick Amper, criticized Suffolk's County Executive for not buying enough land.
Now even though I am against the developments that have been going on in the pines here (McMansions, strip malls), the Pine Barrens Society is often not realistic in their goals. Having the government buy land does not get to the ROOT of the problem. The root being that the towns need to zone out, that is prohibit, developers from building certain projects that will have a negative impact on the environment.
I strongly disagree with the Pine Barrens Society on it's stance since it's inception, on opposing any and all energy projects here on Long Island. It started in the 1980s with Shoreham. LILCO (now LIPA) was constructing a Nuclear power station in Shoreham. This plant would have been able to supply 1000MW of power. The idea was to meet future demand. The plant was finished, only to be shut down without producing one MW of power. The Pine Barrens Society contended that the nuclear plant was going to damage the groundwater, even though it was encased in feet and feet of re-inforced concrete. They further added the fuels of fear and the plant was de-comissioned. But the ratepayers still had to pay for it. It's one of the reasons we have the highest electric rates in the nation, as well as a tight power supply. So tight in fact, that LIPA uses dirty diesel generators, which spew out clouds of soot, at many of it's substations. Not to mention the dirty plants in Northport and Port Jeff which burn expensive oil. LILCO was actually very smart, and the Shoreham (and the Jamesport, never built) nuclear power plants would have solved LI's power crisis and our rates would have been 60% of what they are today.
So that's a pretty good reason why although I am an avid lover of the pines, I am not a member of the Long Island Pine Barrens Society. They also oppose Broadwater, a natural gas link that would lower our energy costs. I believe the McMansions and strip malls that have been built here have caused much more harm to the pine barrens than Shoreham ever would have. Everytime it rains on LI tehy have to shut beaches because of contaminated stormwater runoff. Maybe if the Pine Barrens Society picked the right battles, we would have less McMansions and malls, cheaper power, and cleaner air and water.