january 2, 2014
Westchester County
Business Journal
westfaironline.com
The ‘face’ of Indian Point ready to retire
There’s no middle ground with nuclear energy. You either love it or hate it.
And when it comes to Indian Point, long a politically charged lightning rod, being the spokesman for the company that runs it takes aplomb and a steely coolness when for most people the response would be just the opposite.
After 23 years in that proverbial hot seat, Jim Steets is soon retiring after fielding innumerable press inquiries, taking on opposition from anti-nuke groups and politicians including Gov. Andrew Cuomo who would like to see Indian Point shut down, and demystifying the national controversy with nuclear power.
With nuclear energy a tension-fraught issue where any debate can rise quickly to fever pitch, Steets said his tactic is to always take the high road.
But sometimes, he said it’s tough to remain nonconfrontational when people don’t do their research, basing their arguments on misinformation.
“It’s a lot of emotion,” Steets said. “You hear a lot of things that are said by our opponents and that can get your emotions up, but you have to just check yourself.”
As spokesman for Entergy Nuclear Northeast, Steets supervises internal and external communications for six nuclear plants and leads a staff of 15 managers, specialists and administrators. Indian Point is
responsible for carrying 25 percent of the power on the New York City and Westchester electric grid, Steets said.
He started in the nuclear energy industry in 1990 as the senior federal affairs representative of the New York Power Authority. He served as the communications manager for the Power Authority, being the primary spokesman for Indian Point unit 3, making the case for the economic and environmental benefits of the plant.
And while the local challenge is managing the ongoing debate over the re-licensing of two nuclear power plants at Buchanan-based Indian Point, Steets has often been called to address issues on the world stage.
Following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, Steets faced an unrelenting barrage of questions, phone calls and emails about Indian Point’s potential as a target for terrorists. Although Steets worried about the potential for Indian Point to be attacked, too, he said many people don’t realize that even if it was hit, a nuclear power plant can’t explode.
“There isn’t anything you can do to a commercial nuclear reactor to make it behave like a nuclear bomb,” Steets said. “The technology isn’t there. The makeup of the fuel isn’t enriched enough to cause a nuclear explosion. It’s only enriched to about six percent.”
In 2011, the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan resulting from a tsunami and earthquake raised concern about the ability for Indian Point to withstand natural disasters. Steets said despite the pressure to put the public at ease, he said all he had to do was lay out the facts.
“The difference between the nuclear plants in Japan and Indian Point are important,” Steets said. “The plant at Fukushima was unable to withstand the tsunami because their fuel tanks sat above ground and were swept away. Ours are underground. The challenges could’ve easily been dealt with in Japan if the fuel tanks were relocated.”
Steets said he enjoys helping people separate the myths from the facts about nuclear power plants and radiation. And he does so with an amiable yet firm and calm tone of voice even when reporters grill him with tough questions.
“One of the things I’ve enjoyed is the opportunity to convince people. Whatever their beliefs may have been about nuclear power plants, they’re probably not based on science or facts. And so when I can bring that information to them and see their point of view change, I get a lot of satisfaction from that.”
With the current relicensing of a nuclear power plant at Indian Point pending approval, Steets said it could take up to five years to fully relicense Indian Point unit 2, which Entergy bought from Con Edison in mid-2001. One year earlier, Entergy bought Indian Point unit 3 from the New York Power Authority, and the permit on that power plant expires December 2015. Unit 2, which expired in September, will operate throughout the application renewal process under federal law. Indian Point unit 1 is out of use.
Entergy is invested in the license renewal application to ensure that the two plants meet the requirements, and the NRC staff has already recommended those plants be granted their licenses, Steets said. The review process is very thorough and conducted by a five-member, presidentially-appointed Commission that oversees the NRC.
“When all is said and done, I don’t think anyone can say that when Entergy achieves those licenses, it did not demonstrate in a very positive, tangible way that those plants can operate safely for the next 20 years,” Steets said.
When Steets retires on Jan. 31, Jerry Nappi, communications manager at Indian Point, will take over.
“I think Jerry is going to perform his duties extremely well,” Steets said. “He’s got a good head on his shoulders, and he’s familiar with the political arena and the need to stay the high road on these issues.”
Steets said he will remain involved in the Westchester community as a board member of two organizations: the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester in Mount Kisco and the Hudson River Healthcare based in Peekskill.
At age 60, he plans to spend more time on the fairway, but stay updated on energy-related issues.
“I’m going to be a better golfer,” said Steets, who grew up in Spring Lake, N.J., and now lives in Middletown with his wife, Marie, who is the deputy county clerk in charge of motor vehicles for Orange County.
“I’ll also be involved and helpful and supportive of Indian Point’s license renewal in any way I can and any way they’re willing to have me.”
march 24, 2014
Fairfield County
Business Journal
westfaironline.com
Metro-North 100-day plan bumps into fed probe
Metro-North safety concerns were given a tragic exclamation point this month when a track worker was killed just days after the unveiling of a 100-day plan to improve rail safety.
The Federal Railroad Administration, meantime, conducted a “Deep Dive” investigation in which it assigned 50 experts in railroad operations and safety to observe the day-to-day operations of the railroad for 60 days and to submit a report. That report said on-time metrics are trumping safety at Metro-North.
Joseph J. Giuletti became the railroad’s new president in February and announced the 100-day plan this month as a response to a tumultuous stretch for the railroad that included two derailments and power outage that interrupted service. The plan outlined four major steps: promoting a culture of safety, adopting concrete safety enhancements, restoring reliable service and improving communications.
But less than a week after that announcement, on March 10, a Metro-North worker was struck and killed in Harlem by a Poughkeepsie-bound train. That was the latest in a string of tragedies on the Metro-North’s three rail lines — the Harlem, Hudson and New Haven.
In May 2013, a track foreman was struck and killed in West Haven. A New Haven line train derailed last year and a Hudson Line train, reportedly speeding excessively, jumped a track, killing four and leaving 100 others injured.
The Federal Railroad Administration cited a “deficient safety culture” at the railroad.
James Redeker, the Connecticut Department of Transportation commissioner, said his department has a vested interest in monitoring how federal dollars are spent on the rails. The state has already invested $18 million on upgrades to the tracks, Redeker said.
Service has been gradually improving on the Metro-North, Redeker added. A month ago, 80 percent of the trains were considered on time. This month that number increased to 90 percent, he said.
Redeker said that Metro-North administrators have been involved in listening sessions organized by his agency last month, in which the public was invited to voice their concerns.
“We want to include a more public component so people understand what our roles and responsibilities are and there’s transparency on the outcomes and measures we are or aren’t achieving,” Redeker said. “When things go well you don’t think about that. But we’re in a different spot now. It’s the right thing to do and necessary thing to do.”
Two ‘speak-out’ events were held last month in Southport and Stamford. About 200 commuters participated. Several addressed the impact on businesses.
Some Realtors in Connecticut said they’re losing closings because out-of-state clients are reluctant to buy houses after hearing about the rail issues, said Jim Cameron, founder of the Commuter Action Group, a web forum where commuters can share their qualms about the Metro-North and exchange information about service changes and delays.
“No one wants to live someplace where when you turn on the tap water doesn’t come out,” Cameron said. “No one can afford to live in a place where the train is unreliable and will be running slow for decades to come. If people aren’t moving here demands drop, prices drop and taxes have to rise to meet the cost of diminished property values.”
Lawmakers and officials are receiving complaint emails and phone calls, which got the attention of the federal government. Some commuters have even resorted to “civil disobedience” by boycotting train tickets, but that’s not the solution, Cameron said.
“People in the legislature, including the governor, who are protesting and screaming at Metro-North, are the same people responsible for the problems we’re in,” Cameron said.
With travel disruptions happening during an election year, “commuters will remember come November if you’re not helping in the winter of discontentment,” he said.
september 4, 2014
Fairfield County
Business Journal
westfaironline.com
Wrestling with how to keep urban communities intact
Sometimes it takes sweat equity and faith to rebuild a community.
Bridgeport and Cincinnati may be 700 miles apart, but each share high percentages of residents living below the poverty level — 24 and 29 percent, respectively. They also have in common organizations committed to restoring balance in economies made lopsided by urban renewal.
The flight of the urban poor from redeveloped areas is a growing problem nationwide. Urban renewal projects, which often promise to bring a diverse group of people together, can create an exodus of the urban poor. For community leaders, it has been a struggle to keep their neighborhoods intact.
The president of a Fairfield County nonprofit based in Bridgeport and a Korean missionary couple who started a church in Cincinnati have dedicated themselves to what they believe are cornerstones to building a community: One focuses on providing low-income families with homes and the other is establishing a church that serves not just its members but its surrounding neighborhood.
For years, urban renewal has been used by municipalities as an economic engine that revitalizes central business districts as well as residential neighborhoods.
But often, the people who have lived in these neighborhoods have been forced to leave as rents rise.
Bruce Berzin, president of Habitat for Humanity of Coastal Fairfield County, sees value in getting the urban poor back in the labor force by motivating them to find jobs. His projects are specifically geared toward low-income families and individuals who are working but are in need of affordable housing. The idea is to provide a next step for people who are actively trying to break the cycle of poverty and empower them to serve in volunteer projects throughout their neighborhood, he said.
“In order for a family to get a Habitat house, they have to be living in housing that’s unacceptable in one form or another — whether it be affordability, the conditions of the house or overcrowding,” Berzin said. “The other criteria are that they have to be able to pay off the mortgage we provide and be willing to partner with us in providing 500 hours of sweat equity.”
Habitat for Humanity covers all towns on the Connecticut coast between Greenwich and Stratford, but the vast majority of homes are in Bridgeport, Berzin said. Most recently, it has been buying city-owned lots and turning them into single-family homes and duplexes in Bridgeport, which is a major focus for urban renewal.
“The city has been selling us empty lots for $1, and they can be sure within a year of selling us a lot, there will be a house and a family paying for it,” Berzin said. “It’s such a great deal for the city. These vacant lots cost the city a lot of money. They attract garbage and crime and that costs the city money to deal with them. To have that transformed into a home with people who will create a community and pay taxes is a win-win.”
Another city, another take
In Cincinnati, Pastor Johann Kim and his wife, Sister Grace — a physics professor and children’s hospital nurse, respectively — have a long-term vision for urban renewal in their city. Their idea is to create a church in the heart of Over-the-Rhine, a neighborhood known for high crime, gun violence and drug deals. The church would serve as a place that fulfills basic needs such as shelter, food and a place to worship.
The couple, who has lived in Cincinnati since the late 1990s, was uncertain about where their church would meet for the past seven months. It had outgrown its rented space inside Prince of Peace Church, which had asked them to relocate because it wanted to renovate and expand. Kim said he kept searching for available spaces without any clear leads on a permanent church building. But he said the ultimate peace and comfort came when he heard of a deal that was too good to refuse.
The pastor ended up buying an abandoned church building at a lower-than-expected price last month, and for the first time in nearly two decades, Living Water Ministry finally has a permanent meeting space to host Sunday services, church activities and Bible studies.
When I met the Kims this summer on a missions trip with Remnant Westside Church in Manhattan, I saw they were passionate about two things: sharing their ministry on the streets of Cincinnati and gutting an abandoned, derelict property to build a house of worship. My team of church volunteers had the chance to help with demolition and construction on the church site for about a week. Many of the neighbors we met were African-American single mothers and children who said that Living Water Ministry has been a vital organ in the community. The common thread in their stories is that if it weren’t for this church showing them hospitality and compassion, they would be in a much different place.
Despite the reality that gentrification may push out the urban poor, the Kims bought the church building in faith that it will provide a wellspring of resources in the Over-the-Rhine community for generations to come. The church is in the heart of the city around the corner from the couple’s home, which has a vineyard painted on the outer wall with a Bible verse that reads: “I am the vine, you are the branches... apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5.”