Politics & Government

PSE&G Wants Longwood Lake Land, Owners Geared Up For Fight

Longwood Lake association wants opportunity to dispute PSE&G's petition for eminent domain.

What could be an involved battle over PSE&G's plan to acquire land in Jefferson Township for its controversial power line project is just beginning.

Representatives of PSE&G and area homeowners met Thursday about the power company's plans to take property in the Longwood Lake section of town through eminent domain. The meeting was a pre-hearing conference that could eventually lead to a decision by the Board of Public Utilities; those involved worked to hash out procedural issues over how the dispute would proceed.

The aquisition would be in conjunction with PSE&G's controversial plan to add 500-kilovolt power lines to towers reaching up to 195 feet tall in a 140-mile range from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, including property that runs through Longwood Lake. The project is known as the Susquehanna-Roseland Line, and has been delayed as it awaits administrative approvals. Environmental groups and others have opposed it under an umbrella group known as the Stop the Lines Coalition, which includes the Longwood Lake Cabin Owners’ Association (LLCOA).

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PSE&G hopes to use land in the Longwood Lake section of town for a temporary access road it would use during construction of the towers, said Deann Muzikar, a spokesperson for the utility. 

Melvin Greenberg, the attorney representing the Longwood Lake association, said PSE&G brought the association into the proceedings on a petition to acquire the property through eminent domain, separate from any other group that may have an issue with the power line. PSE&G is also looking to acquire property in Montville and Rockaway.

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"Because we were brought in separately, we have legal rights under due process to fight this, and we will," Greenberg said during Thursday's meeting.

Richard DeAngelis, the attorney representing PSE&G, opposed that, saying that the LLCOA had ample opportunity to express its opposition at the same time several other groups did.

"We filed our petition for the line in May of 2010," DeAngelis said. "That gave the LLCOA nine months to express opposition, and they haven't. We shouldn't be relitigating the case now."

Greenberg said PSE&G had sought an easement for access to wooded property owned by the association—but the association turned it down. It was then that PSE&G raised the possibility of eminent domain, he said. 

"PSE&G always views condemnation as a last resort when reasonable efforts to achieve a negotiated settlement have been unsuccessful," Muzikar said in a statement e-mailed to Patch. 

After both sides stated their cases and suggestions Thursday, Deputy Attorney General Kerri Kirschbaum, who mediated at the meeting, worked with each side to set dates for filings. It was decided that a first set of filings—either briefs detailing each side's understanding of the scope of the matter, or motions—would be due on March 30. Responses would then be due on April 20. Kirschbaum would bring the dates and suggestions for type of filing to BPU Commissioner Joseph Fiordaliso. He is expected to issue an order to all parties involved on either Friday or Tuesday.

PSE&G's eminent domain request also includes properties in Montville and Rockaway. According to the BPU, the three properties affected are:

  • Land owned by the Longwood Lake Cabin Owner's Association on Berkshire Valley Road, Jefferson Township
  • 148 Upper Hibernia Road, Rockaway 
  • 134 Waughaw Road, Montville

The Longwood Lake association's opposition to the project extends beyond its concerns over the area sought for the access road. In its May 2010 newsletter, it told members:

It affects us because the new lines would replace our existing power lines and towers with new lines and towers that would be about twice as high as the existing towers.  The existing towers are not very visible to most of us because they are not much higher than the tree line as viewed from most of our cabins and from the lake. The new towers would extend a hundred feet or more higher than the tree line, so they would be far more obtrusive than the existing towers. Aside from the horrible aesthetics, the new lines are likely to be far noisier than the old ones, and the construction activities involved in installing the new lines and towers pose the risk of substantial damage to our property and to the lake itself. There are many reasons that this project is a bad idea beyond its immediate effect on our property.  One major negative for this project is that it relies on coal-generated power in Pennsylvania, the dirtiest power souce in use in the U.S.  Pollution and acid rain from the new coal-fired plants will be blown accross New Jersey and would increase the risk of acid rain over the lake.  

The association also said in the newsletter it was in talks with PSE&G "to minimize the negative impact on our property and to be paid compensation for the impacts that cannot be mitigated, in the event that the project goes forward."

The BPU has approved PSE&G’s request to build the lines, however, the company must still get approvals from the Department of Environmental Protection. The DEP will not issue any permits until the National Park Service completes an environmental impact study. Therefore, according to PSE&G, the in-service date for the eastern portion of the line is 2014 and the western portion will be in service in 2015. The utility maintains a timeline of events related to the power line project here.


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