Suffolk Closeup - Billionaire Louis Bacon Preserves Robbins Island

SUFFOLK CLOSEUP

By Karl Grossman

Louis Moore Bacon, the billionaire hedge fund manager who owns Robins Island, is closing his hedge fund. But, according to The Nature Conservancy, with which in 1997 Mr. Bacon arranged a conservation easement for the island, the preservation of Robins Island will remain as it has been. 

This is because, explains Joseph Jannsen, conservation lands director for The Nature Conservancy of LongRobins Island is a 435-acre island in Peconic Bay by the eastern end of Long Island off the coast of New Suffolk, New York. The island is privately owned and not accessible to the public and is within the jurisdiction of the Town of Southold in Suffolk County, New York in the United States. Wikipedia Island, the conservation easement runs “in perpetuity.” 

No matter who owns the island, he said, “the conservation easement stays with the property.” It provides for preservation of the “vast majority” of the 435-acre island between Great Peconic Bay and Little Peconic Bay. 

All that is not covered by the easement are some “small areas” on which several buildings on the island sit and land otherwise “disturbed.” But “approximately 90 percent of the island is preserved in perpetuity,” says Mr. Jannsen.

Although Mr. Bacon, 63, is closing his hedge fund, he remains one of the world’s richest people—the “707^th richest person in the world,” according to Forbes magazine. His net worth has been put at $1.7 billion. Moreover, he is a dedicated environmentalist who since acquiring Robins Island has been committed to its preservation as well as preservation of land facing it on the South Fork and North Fork which he subsequently bought.

 Robins Island was once envisioned, as described by then Suffolk County Legislator Steven Englebright of Setauket, now a State Assembly member and chair of its Environmental Conservation Committee, as the “crown jewel” in the Suffolk County parklands and open space programs. It’s “our Yosemite,” he said.

In 1989, under then Suffolk County Executive Patrick Halpin, the county was in 

the process of buying Robins Island—something environmentalists had sought for decades. 

“Suffolk County Agrees to Buy Robins Island and Preserve It,” said the 1989 headline in The New York Times. The article quoted Mr. Halpin (now chairman of the Suffolk County Water Authority) as saying: ”You’re not going to see bulldozers plowing through Robins Island. It is a virtual time capsule of Long Island’s natural and human history.” 

The price was $9.2 million and the transaction was with Herbert Mittermayer and his son, Claus, both of West Germany, who speculated on offshore islands and bought Robins Island for $1.3 million in 1979. The Times in a later piece reported how the Mittermayers had been “offering it to everyone from Prince Moulay Abdullah, a brother of King Hassan of Morocco, to Donald J. Trump and finding no buyer.”

Then in 1990 Republican Robert Gaffney defeated Democrat Halpin for county executive and he scuttled the Robins Island deal that Mr. Halpin had signed. Mr. Gaffney maintained that he wanted to save the county money.

Meanwhile, the Mittermayers filed for bankruptcy for the entity through which they owned Robins Island, Southold Development Corporation. The future of Robins Island then landed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court and Mr. Bacon entered the picture offering to purchase Robins Island for $11 million and to join with The Nature Conservancy to preserve it.

And he and The Nature Conservancy have. 

“Billionaire Investor Louis Bacon Closes Hedge Fund To Clients,” was the headline on Forbes magazine website last month. “Legendary investor Louis Bacon told his investors…that he would be closing his big multi-manager hedge funds, another signal of the increasing difficulty traders are having making hedge fund strategies work,” began the article.

Incidentally, for readers who don’t understand what a hedge fund is, a definition by Investopedia online is: “Hedge funds are alternative investments using pooled funds that employ different strategies to earn active return, or alpha, for their investors. Hedge funds may be aggressively managed or make use of derivates and leverage in both domestic and international markets.” Does that explain things? Not for me either.

But Mr. Bacon did understand how a hedge fund works. As CNBC has reported, he “founded Moore Capital in 1989 with a $25,000 inheritance from his mother” and “rose to Wall Street fame making bets on everything from U.S. equity to European bonds and Asian currencies based on global events.” And he “is considered one of the most successful traders of his era.”

As to his environmentalism, an online biography by writer Allen Salkin about the “reclusive” North Carolina-born father-of-four —titled “Bringing Home Bacon”—notes: “He has permanently conserved nearly 1,000 acres of pristine East End land worth an estimated $85 million, signing away development rights and granting stewardship to environmental groups. Thanks to him, some of the most valuable real estate in the world will remain home to ospreys, deer and mud turtles.”

Karl Grossman is a veteran investigative reporter and columnist, the winner of numerous awards for his work and a member of the L.I. Journalism Hall of Fame. He is a professor of journalism at SUNY/College at Old Westbury and the author of six books.    

St James Residents Sidney And Audrey Pearlman Celebrate 65th Anniversary

65^th Wedding Anniversary Celebrated 

Sidney and Audrey Pearlman of St. James (previously of Nesconset) were wed on December 18, 1954 at the Benson Chateau in Brooklyn. They met on a blind date, set up by friends.  Audrey is a retired 1^st grade teacher and Sid is retired from Grumman Aircraft as an Engineer and then the IRS after his retirement.  They have 2 children and 5 grandchildren.  They celebrated with family at the Sunrise Assisted Living in Smithtown, where Sid is a resident. 

Suffolk Closeup - Robert Moses State Park Name Change Introduced In Albany

SUFFOLK CLOSEUP

By Karl Grossman

A bill to change the name of Robert Moses State Park because of the racism of Mr. Moses was introduced last week by State Assemblyman Daniel O’Donnell of Manhattan. An attorney, he grew up in Suffolk, in Commack (and is an older brother of Rosie O’Donnell, the TV personality and author).

His measure declares that “Robert Moses repeatedly abused his power to entrench racial and economic segregation.” Examples cited: when Moses built Jones Beach State Park “he intentionally ordered the overpasses of the connected parkway too low for buses, so that poor people, particularly African-American families, could not access the beach.” He “built most public parks, playgrounds far from Puerto Rican and African-American neighborhoods.” And he “pursued the systematic displacement and segregation of families of color” to build Lincoln Center and “effectively allowed for the discrimination against black veterans and their families in the Stuyvesant Town development.”

“The names of great state parks serve as powerful symbols of which people…celebrate,” the bill says. “The state of New York needs to begin the process of accounting for the historic harm done to communities of color by people like Robert Moses, whose actions still affect many African-American and Hispanic New Yorkers to this day.”

It provides for creation of a commission “to choose a new name” for 875-acre state park that dominates the western portion of Fire Island. 

Mr. Moses’ racism has long been described including in a book published this year, “Saving Fire Island From Robert Moses: The Fight For a National Seashore” by Christopher Verga, who teaches Long Island history at Suffolk County Community College.

Bridges on both Moses’ Southern State and Northern State Parkways were built low because, relates Mr. Verga, Mr. Moses didn’t want buses to pass under them taking African-Americans and Latinos from the city to Jones Beach and other parks on Long Island. “He was very biased,” says Mr. Verga.

Robert Caro of East Hampton who wrote “The Power Broker,” the 1974 biography of Mr. Moses, has described him as “the most racist human being I have ever really encountered.”

Opposing the renaming of Robert Moses State Park—for an unusual reason—is writer Rebecca C. Lewis in a column last week with a head: “Robert Moses State Park already has the perfect name for a notoriously segregated region.”

“The temptation to remove the honor for a legendary mid-century builder, whose legacy has been tarnished by revelations of racist views and exclusionary policies, is understandable,” she writes on cityandstateny.com. “But no one better reflects the history of the island—racist, segregated, car-dependent, but blessed with beautiful public beaches—than Robert Moses.”

Racism “is embedded in Long Island’s history, whether we like it or not. It’s built into the very foundation of its suburban neighborhoods, as minorities were steered into communities away from white families with brokers that outright refused to sell to non-white homeseekers. Levittown, the nation’s first true modern suburban neighborhood, was literally built for whites,” she continues. “Long Island today remains incredibly segregated.”

This is true—and, indeed, an exemplary recent investigative report by Newsday of racism on Long Island in how whites and people of color are steered (illegally) to different neighborhoods is current documentation. Still, in running the “Long Island Divided” series, Newsday went out of its way to publish an “acknowledgement” in an editorial that the newspaper “missed a critical chance to lead” in regard to Levittown. It boosted Levittown although blacks, it noted, were “barred…This was no secret. The covenant was in every early lease, in caps: THE TENANT AGREES NOT TO PERMIT THE PREMISES TO BE USED OR OCCUPIED BY ANY PERSON OTHER THAN MEMBERS OF THE CAUCASIAN RACE.”

That was shameful. And the continuing racism on Long Island is outrageous.

In southern states, there has been a reckoning with efforts to end the display of the Confederate flag and statues of Confederate leaders. There needs to be a similar reckoning here when it comes to Mr. Moses, a resident of Babylon (where a bronze statue of him was put up in 2003).

Full disclosure: Mr. Moses got me fired in 1964 from my first job as a reporter because of an article I wrote about civil rights activists being beaten by private security guards on opening day of the New York World’s Fair, which he ran, as they demonstrated against racism in its hiring. 

Karl Grossman is a veteran investigative reporter and columnist, the winner of numerous awards for his work and a member of the L.I. Journalism Hall of Fame. He is a professor of journalism at SUNY/College at Old Westbury and the author of six books.    

SC Legislators Want Your Opinion On Doing Their Work By Videoconference

Suffolk County residents will have the opportunity Wednesday, Dec. 11, to express their opinions about whether or not legislators should be permitted to participate in legislative meetings through videoconferencing.

A public hearing on videoconferencing will be held Wednesday, Dec. 11 from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the William H. Rogers Legislature Building. Speakers will have 3 minutes to share their thoughts.

The idea of videoconferencing became a topic of discussion ealier this year when Legislator Berland, LD 16, away on vacation, wanted to participate in a committee meeting by videoconference. A determination was made that the rules did not address the issue and therefore videoconferencing was not permissible. Now, the committee is looking to hear from members of the public.

“As elected officials, we represent the constituents of Suffolk County, and this is not a decision that should be made without their input. There is much to consider, and we look forward to hearing what the public has to say,” said Presiding Officer DuWayne Gregory.

To allow for videoconferencing at meetings of the legislature, Suffolk lawmakers would have to approve a change to the rules of the county legislature’s proceedings. A vote could occur as early as the organizational meeting on Jan. 2, 2020.

If you are unable to be present at the public hearing you may submit written comments in email to presidingofficer.legislature@suffolkcountyny.gov.

Suffolk Closeup - National Grid Shareholders To Pay $36 Million Penalty

SUFFOLK CLOSEUP

By Karl Grossman

When the Long Island Power Authority sought a partner in 1998 to work with it in operating Long Island’s energy system, it selected what it—and many—considered the best utility in the New York Metropolitan Area: Brooklyn Union Gas Company.

Especially under the leadership of Eugene Luntey, who spent 39 years with Brooklyn Union, including as its chairman and CEO (he’s now retired with a home on Shelter Island), it had a superlative record. With a changed name, KeySpan, it joined up with LIPA.

But then, suddenly, in 2006, KeySpan was bought for $7.3 billion by a London, England-based company, National Grid. As a division of National Grid, what was the top utility in this region fell quickly in providing services. Its poor performance when Superstorm Sandy hit Long Island in 2012 and nearly all of LIPA’s 1.1 million customers suffering a black-out resulted in Governor Andrew Cuomo orchestrating a change at LIPA—kicking out National Grid and replacing it with a New Jersey-based utility, Public Service Electric & Gas.

National Grid, meanwhile, although then no longer involved with electricity on Long Island, remained in the gas business. And in recent months its reputation descended further. 

Although there are utilities and governments across the nation focusing on renewable energy in a time of climate change caused largely by the burning of fossil fuels—coal, oil and, yes, gas—National Grid remained devoted to gas. 

It fought for a pipeline to be trenched under New York Harbor to south of the Rockaways bringing gas produced by fracking in Pennsylvania to this area. Environmentalists challenged the plan—because of fracking being a terribly polluting process, gas-burning contributing to climate change, and oil and gas pipelines being known to leak.

To push its pipeline scheme, National Grid declared a “moratorium” on new gas installations. Thousands were denied new service. Several companies thus decided to abandon Long Island and move elsewhere. 

Laura Shindell of the environmental organization Food & Water Action, charged: “National Grid is holding New Yorkers hostage in order to lobby for a dirty pipeline that would devastate New York Harbor….The Williams pipeline is an expensive, unnecessary project that threatens our water and would deepen our dependence on dirty fossil fuels.”

Peter J. Gollon, former energy chair of the Long Island Sierra Club and now a LIPA trustee, in a Long Island Business News piece titled “Natural gas is not the long-term solution for Long Island,” wrote that “failure to stop the burning of fossil fuels [will] lead to catastrophic global warming” including having a “long-lasting and detrimental effect right here on Long Island. Montauk is already considering how to retreat from a shoreline that has been battered by strengthened coastal storms made more severe by rising sea levels.” The “characterization of gas as a ‘bridge’ to renewable energy is misleading. The fact is that methane produced and released by fracking is a far more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.” Dr. Gollon, a nuclear physicist, called for implementation of wind and solar power—which “are the least expensive sources of electricity”—and other green energy technologies.

Governor Cuomo, as he did post-Sandy, challenged National Grid declaring: “We’re against the pipeline” and if National Grid was involved in manipulating gas service “to create political pressure….that’s extortion. That’s a crime.” He informed National Grid that its license to operate in downstate New York would be revoked if it continued with its “moratorium” and pipeline push. He commented: “They’re not the only utility in the world, and a lot of companies would like to have this franchise.”

National Grid gave in last week. It agreed to a settlement that includes a $36 million penalty to “compensate customers adversely affected by the moratorium”—to be paid by shareholders, not ratepayers—and pay $7 million to help customers impacted by the stoppage, and also to promptly do the hook-ups it had refused to make. “Today,” said Mr. Cuomo, “it was made clear that we will not allow any business—big or small—to extort New Yorkers in order to advance its own business.”

Also last week, National Grid, as the Newsday headline heralded, “finds gas to resolve supply problem.” It advised the state Public Service Commission that it will connect to the Iroquois gas pipeline—that just happens to run from Canada to Commack.

But the overriding question remains: will National Grid ever get off its allegiance to gas and endeavor to provide green energy which doesn’t contribute to climate change?

Karl Grossman is a veteran investigative reporter and columnist, the winner of numerous awards for his work and a member of the L.I. Journalism Hall of Fame. He is a professor of journalism at SUNY/College at Old Westbury and the author of six books.