Public Comment Open Through July 8 —

Lake Lillinonah Residents Face Shoreline Fees

By Kendra Bobowick

Some lakeside residents feel their ability to do as they please on their own property may be hampered by federal agency regulations and usage fees.

Fred Stakel who lives along Lake Zoar said, “When you own your own property you should [be able to] do what you want.”

Although no fees have been implemented — yet — he said, “They still regulate a lot of things you can do on your property.”

“They” are the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Northeast Generation Service Company (NGS). Home and property owners along Lakes Candlewood and Lillinonah are also, literally, on the fringes of a Shoreline Management Plan (SMP) underway by the generation company, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Northeast Utilities.

The SMP concerns Mr Stakel.

He said, “We bought our property…and there was no mention of anyone else having control of the property. I don’t like that,” he said.

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal said that in a general sense “there are always limits even when you own your own home…”

He noted that regulations and permits apply in other respects.

“The DEP regulates things too…there are zoning regulations about what you can and can’t do on your property,” he said, also mentioning wetlands protection.

The fees will not apply to Lake Zoar once they take effect in approximately 2008, and the reason has to do with ownership.

Explaining the difference is Lake Zoar Authority member Paul Gallichotte who said, “From what I understand, [the power company] only purchased flowage rights, and not the land [on Zoar].”

The power company owns property on Candlewood and Lillinonah “from the water’s edge and back a bit,” said Lake Zoar Authority member Bill Soracin.

Lake Zoar is different.

Land Use and Zoning Enforcement Officer George Benson explained that Zoar property owners own “up to the shoreline” and in some cases the property extends into the water. In his opinion, the NGS, “will leave Lake Zoar alone.”

The other lakes are different.

Echoing Mr Gallichotte’s statement, Mr Benson said that a certain elevation, “beyond the water level is the power company’s.”

Compared to the larger Lakes Lillinonah and Candlewood, he said, “They own up to a certain level [on land].”

Senior Communications Specialist Joel Weinberg, speaking for NGS, confirmed that, “95 percent of people on Lake Zoar will not be paying fees. He explained that fees will impact residents along Newtown’s Lake Lillinonah, neighboring Candlewood Lake, but will not affect Lake Zoar.

Fees imposed on Lake Lillinonah residents “vary based on what they own.”

To date, the fee structure is a proposal, Mr Weinberg stressed, and still open to discussion. A public comment period remains open until July 8. Further details, including fee structures, can be found at essexpartnership.com.

Word of impending fees has alarmed residents on all three lakes. Attorney General Richard Blumenthal has also publicly vowed to do what he can for residents.

Pinpointing the problem, Mr Gallichotte, a Southbury member of the Zoar authority, said, “The real uproar now is a lot of people with land on the lakes, even for many years, may have never paid anything to use the shoreline…”

Explaining that structures such as docks or gazebos or decks that may extend into the water, and essentially onto NGS owned property at Lillinonah, have always been accompanied by fees associated with permits, for example.

Mr Gallichotte said, “You were always supposed to register. All along people were supposed to get approval from and pay NGS, but may not have known.”

The fees are an unexpected expense to some lake residents, however.

Offering his opinion related to the recent public hearings held regarding the management plan this week, Mr Gallichotte said, “All this is because they didn’t do a good job on managing property to begin with.” He also indicated, “All that will be cleared up.”

A July 24 deadline looms, at which time the Northeast Generation Services must file its management plan with FERC.

Are the fees unfair?

Bruce DiGennaro, representing The Essex Partnership, a company providing strategic consulting services to the energy and environmental sectors, is working closely with NGS, gives perspective to the fees charged for docks and other structures along the power company’s property along Lillinonah and Candlewood.

He said, “It’s just like if you owned something and charge someone to build on it.” He also explained that as owners of the shoreline at Lillinonah, “They have some standards about what is built on the shoreline.”

He said the licensing program began in 1988.

Conversely, Mr Soracin’s property on Lake Zoar extends past the water’s edge.

He offered his analogy saying, “My property [extends to] the water. If they charge me for a dock, I’m charging them for their water on my property.”

Otherwise, he feels the shoreline management is a good idea.

“It’s good to keep an eye on docks,” he said. He also sympathizes with property owners facing fees.

“These are taxpayers now taxed again,” he said. “This is a unique situation.”

On June 23, 2004, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a new License Order to NGS for the continued operation of the Housatonic River Project. Northeast Generation Services operates five hydroelectric developments on the Housatonic River including the Shepaug Dam along Lake Lillinonah, and the Stevenson Dam at Lake Zoar, which are collectively licensed by FERC. The license renewal requires the development of a comprehensive Shoreline Management Plan for managing reservoir shorelines and riverfront lands within the project boundary. The SMP will cover shoreline lands surrounding lakes including Lillinonah and Zoar, which affect Newtown residents.

The SMP is among several initiatives required of NGS per the licensing agreement. Also ongoing is a water cleanup project aimed at debris in the lakes, and other goals aimed at plant life and habitats.

Mr DiGennaro said, “Basically they want a project that doesn’t interfere with scenic, recreational, or environmental resources. They have to balance these things along with power generation.”

 

Proposed Fees

Mr DiGennaro discussed what lakeside property owners could expect.

“We’re looking at some fee structures,” he said, regarding items such as docks along Lake Lillinonah. He reiterated that Zoar residents do not face fees.

The fees are Use and Occupancy fees in the following sums:

Annual fee, $200–$400; stage 2 or 3 buffer 50 percent reduction.

One-time licensing fees are: for docks up to 320 square feet, $500; docks more than 320 square feet, $1,000; storage shed up to eight by ten feet, $500; wooden deck up to 20 by 20 feet, $1,000; patio set in sand, no mortar, $750; gazebo up to 150 square feet, $1,000; beach area with sand up to 1,000 square feet, $1,000; retaining wall, $500; swim platform up to ten by ten feet, with DEP approval, $300; storm drainage piped or diverted across project lands, $300; enforcement fee $5,000.

Mr DiGennaro said he realizes that residents are concerned about the fees.

“Nobody likes to pay for something but the overall goal is to make the lakes a better place for everyone and part of that is to regulate the shoreline.”

Conscious of residents’ displeasure about fees, Mr Rosenthal said of the NGS, “We certainly won’t roll over and let them do what they want.”

Mr Rosenthal is also aware of the concern regarding the fees, and the other stipulations to which landowners may have to adhere.

As stated on Essexpartnership.com, part of the shoreline management goals’ aim is to “promote the conservation of land and water resources … in order to improve water quality and other natural and cultural resources including fish and wildlife habitat, recreation, aesthetics, and historic features…”

He said, “There are some things I like about what they are doing.”

He condones the environmentally responsible efforts, saying, “I would think the public would have concerns themselves about polluting the water.”

The goal of this process is to develop a SMP that meets the requirements as set out in the License Order issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for the project and in accordance with FERC guidelines. It is the Northeast Generation Company’s hope and desire that the process to develop the SMP works to fairly represent the needs of all stakeholders and that it appropriately addresses identified issues. The SMP development process has been specifically designed to include multiple venues for stakeholder and public input…which is intended to facilitate both the dissemination of information regarding the SMP and receipt of comments and suggestions. The NGC hopes to develop a consensus-based plan that allows for continued public and private uses of shoreline lands while also protecting important environmental resources and providing consistent policies and practices across the entire project area.

Northeast Generation Services Company (NGS) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Northeast Utilities. Northeast Utilities operates New England’s largest energy delivery system and is one of the Northeast’s leading competitive energy suppliers. Headquartered in Rocky Hill, NGS manages and operates power-generating facilities for various NU subsidiaries and other owners across the Northeast. The company also provides consulting and engineering, electrical and mechanical contracting, and other specialty energy services to a wide variety of markets including fossil-fueled and hydroelectric plants, nuclear facilities, industrial plants and distributed generation resources. NGS is a recognized industry leader in power generation and industrial technologies. More information about the company is available on the Internet at www.nsg-nu.com.