Lohud July 9, 2013
Written by: Khurrum Saeed
TOMKINS COVE — The former Lovett power plant will likely serve as a staging area to build parts of the new Tappan Zee Bridge.
Tappan Zee Constructors, the team designing and building the $4 billion replacement crossing, is in final discussions with NRG Energy to lease the long-vacant 30-acre parcel in Tomkins Cove, team spokeswoman Carla Julian said Monday.
Also, Stony Point Supervisor Geoff Finn will meet at noon Friday with Tappan Zee Constructors officials to discuss plans for the riverfront property. The meeting is purely informational since NRG owns the land and is negotiating the deal.
“I’m excited because there’ll be some activity there,” Finn said of the site, which is off of Elm Avenue. “It would certainly be good for our tax base.”
Last week, Tappan Zee Constructors withdrew a proposal to lease a 10-acre property in the Village of Haverstraw, said real-estate agent Jim Damiani, who has been working with the consortium for six months regarding use of the former site of the Empire State Chair Factory. He said the builders provided a staging area plan to the village early last month.
“I got a message from them that they were withdrawing from any further discussion,” said Damiani, who works for Rand Commercial Services in New City. “I guess they’re not interested.”
The coal-fueled Lovett plant was torn down in 2008, when the previous owner opted not to upgrade to meet state environmental regulations.
The property has an assessed value of $875,000 with a $5.5 million market value, Stony Point Assessor Bill Beckmann said. NRG pays about $315,000 in annual property taxes to the town and the North Rockland Central School District.
How much more the town stands to receive by Tappan Zee Constructors’ presence remains to be seen, and it depends on what structures are installed.
“If they add value to the real property, they’ll be taxed accordingly,” said Beckmann, who will join Finn at Friday’s meeting.
Ninety percent of the materials that will be used to build the span will arrive by barge.
Some of that will be accomplished by building some of the larger components at an off-site staging area and floating them by barge to the work site.
Dredging is scheduled for next month and work on the main span is expected to begin in October.
A spokesman for NRG did not respond to phone messages Monday seeking comment.