Billsman
January 24th, 2006, 1:19:05 PM
Political leaders, with Higgins in front, won substantially better agreement from NYPA
Power listens to power, and in the case of the $279 million settlement as the Buffalo and Erie County share of the New York Power Authority's relicensing of Niagara River hydropower, that's what happened. The Buffalo Niagara region presented a unified front and won a deal almost three times as lucrative as what the authority first dictated. As important as the overall settlement is the specific designation of $5.5 million a year to the waterfront, a clear, defined priority.
Bygones are now bygones, but the authority wanted to get in and out fast with a $2 million-a-year payment, good for $100 million over 50 years. Up stepped a freshman South Buffalo congressman who said, wait just one minute, this region deserves better. Eight months later, as politicians at every level clamor to take credit, this much is clear: Unity works. But without Rep. Brian M. Higgins there would be no sweetened deal.
This arrangement is smart, too. It avoids raising electricity rates - a NYPA threat if forced to pay more - to companies employing 43,000 local workers; it funnels the money via the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp.; it includes substantial aid for Niagara County and the prospect of a belt of green space connecting the two counties that is as important symbolically - connecting two estranged counties - as recreationally.
With more than $250 million all but guaranteed over 50 years, Erie County can borrow against the revenue stream produced by the Niagara Power Project and provide the waterfront commission with $65 million next year.
There is another lesson: Pick fights to win. Sometimes the community cannot just accept what is offered. The authority had to be cajoled to sweeten the deal, and thanks especially to Higgins and the congressional delegation, it did. Politicians, some late to the game, developed the right mix of leadership and strategy and held fast for a fair share. They should mark this as a model for working together, despite the obstacles, turf fights and inertia, to do what's best for the entire region.
Power listens to power, and in the case of the $279 million settlement as the Buffalo and Erie County share of the New York Power Authority's relicensing of Niagara River hydropower, that's what happened. The Buffalo Niagara region presented a unified front and won a deal almost three times as lucrative as what the authority first dictated. As important as the overall settlement is the specific designation of $5.5 million a year to the waterfront, a clear, defined priority.
Bygones are now bygones, but the authority wanted to get in and out fast with a $2 million-a-year payment, good for $100 million over 50 years. Up stepped a freshman South Buffalo congressman who said, wait just one minute, this region deserves better. Eight months later, as politicians at every level clamor to take credit, this much is clear: Unity works. But without Rep. Brian M. Higgins there would be no sweetened deal.
This arrangement is smart, too. It avoids raising electricity rates - a NYPA threat if forced to pay more - to companies employing 43,000 local workers; it funnels the money via the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp.; it includes substantial aid for Niagara County and the prospect of a belt of green space connecting the two counties that is as important symbolically - connecting two estranged counties - as recreationally.
With more than $250 million all but guaranteed over 50 years, Erie County can borrow against the revenue stream produced by the Niagara Power Project and provide the waterfront commission with $65 million next year.
There is another lesson: Pick fights to win. Sometimes the community cannot just accept what is offered. The authority had to be cajoled to sweeten the deal, and thanks especially to Higgins and the congressional delegation, it did. Politicians, some late to the game, developed the right mix of leadership and strategy and held fast for a fair share. They should mark this as a model for working together, despite the obstacles, turf fights and inertia, to do what's best for the entire region.