STREET CORNER CONSERVATIVE DEMANDS TO KNOW “WHERE’S KESSEL?” PART 2

At NYPA’s March 31, 2009 Board meeting, observers were treated to the unprecedented sight of a gubernatorial appointee, Richie Kessel, NYPA’s CEO, defending, like a wayward schoolchild, where he spends his time while running the nation’s largest public power utility. In response to Street Corner Conservative’s inquiries, Kessel said it was “nonsense” that he has been spending most of his time during working hours on Long Island. Kessel then listed his various ports of call in upstate New York over the last several weeks following his self-created disastrous proposed rate increases and politically tone-deaf call for bonuses for NYPA staff. After being called out publicly by Governor Paterson who has been extraordinarily tolerant of screw-ups by his second-rate appointees, Richie quickly reversed himself and abandoned what he had previously said were “legally required” rate increases and also threw over the side NYPA employees to whom bonuses had been promised.

Kessel, like a conductor on the Long island Rail Road, called out in rapid-fire fashion the upstate towns he has visited—Albany, nine times (State Capital, not exactly upstate); Buffalo, five times, including three meetings with the editorial board of The Buffalo News (Kessel patronized residents of Buffalo by noting that “I loved every minute of it,” making it sound like a visit to Mogadishu); Rochester, once; Montreal, twice (not exactly upstate, but close); Utica and Syracuse, once each; five trips to Watertown and Massena. Well, he said he has even met with several chiefs of the Mohawk Tribe.

Gilding the lily, Kessel added that he spends about “5 to 10%” of his time downstate in New York City and Long Island. We will see about that.

Kessel’s intimate familiarity with his schedule makes a mockery of the several months that NYPA is taking to respond to Street Corner Conservative’s FOIL request for Kessel’s schedule for the first few months of his reign filed on February 17, 2009. Please be assured that Street Corner Conservative will be tracking Richie’s travels as the year unfolds and reporting the NYPA FOIL response when it ultimately emerges.

In other news, at the March 31 Board meeting, NYPA’s Board rewarded Kessel’s stellar work over the last several months and, in response to direction from both Governor Paterson and former Majority Leader Skelos of Long Island, unanimously elected Kessel to a full year term as NYPA CEO. Unsurprisingly in light of his serial miscues over the last month, there were no effusive words of praise for Richie from the five NYPA Trustees (one of whom voted against his appointment in September; one other dissenter recently resigned with no comment from NYPA). Despite the quiet, pro forma approval of his election at the end of a 90-minute meeting, Kessel called the NYPA Board members “my good friends.” Street Corner Conservative is interested in hearing from its correspondents who work at NYPA as to what that “friendship” entails.

THE KESSEL COUNTDOWN:  ­628 DAYS UNTIL RICHIE KESSEL IS FIRED BY THE NEW GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK.

This article I wrote appears in the New York Post on April 13, 2009.

On Tuesday, March 31, NYPA Board of Trustees shirked their fiduciary responsibility when they knowingly elected an inept hack, Richie Kessel, as their President and C.E.O.

NYPA employees have told Street Corner Conservative that Agency morale is at an all time low and many highly skilled and experienced workers are planning to retire or seek employment elsewhere to escape Kessel’s reign of incompetence.  Sadly, this exodus will provide Kessel with opportunities to hire more fourth-rate Long Island politicos.

Today Street Corner Conservative adds a new feature to the Kessel/NYPA Watch, “The Kessel Countdown” which will tally the days until the new governor of New York takes office and hands Kessel a pink slip.

THE KESSEL COUNTDOWN:  ­636 DAYS UNTIL RICHIE KESSEL IS FIRED BY THE NEW GOVERNOR OF NEW YORK.

Richie Kessel actually traveled to upstate New York to hold a press conference on March 24, 2009. Why did he leave his natural habitat, Long Island? Because he did not want Long Island media recording him publicly eating crow and because upstate customers were poised to call for his ouster.

After receiving public lashings from Governor David Paterson (D), Congressman Brian Higgins (D), Erie County Executive Chris Collins (R), Senator George Maziarz (R) and scores of other elected officials, for announcing a 12 ½ % NYPA electrical rate increase, a humiliated and chastened Kessel postponed the rate increase.

A review of Kessel’s words and deeds is revealing:

In February 2009, Kessel gave away $476 million of surplus NYPA money to fund New York State’s operating deficit. The Niagara Gazette reported that Kessel said “the move will not result in layoffs on rate hikes for consumers.” The Niagara Gazette also revealed that as Kessel was agreeing to hand over NYPA money to Governor Paterson (which the state is not legally required to ever pay back), NYPA was applying to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to increase customer electrical rates by 12 ½ %. Richie: Were you deceiving the public?

When confronted with these inconsistencies, Kessel compounded them saying that NYPA money “given to the state had nothing to do with a rate increase. The money could not have been used to lower rates.” But Governor Paterson said “The [NYPA] money was diverted from some projects that never came to fruition.” If $476 million in defunct NYPA projects could be handed over to the state why couldn’t it be handed over to NYPA ratepayers or used to pay down debt and lower rates? Richie: Were you deceiving the public?

When the proposed NYPA rate increase was revealed, Kessel said it was mandated by state law. But when the heat was on, Kessel managed to find an excuse to cancel the “required” rate increase on March 24. He said that NYPA could sell its hydropower for less than cost for an undetermined interim period. Richie: Were you deceiving the public?

When asked by The Buffalo News editorial board and others if the NYPA rate freeze decision was made due to the public backlash and pressure from politicians, Kessel answered “No.” But when asked the same question by the Niagara Gazette, Kessel said, “Did the public pressure make a difference? I think it did and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.” Which is it Richie?

Richie Kessel is unfit to be CEO of the nation’s largest state-owned electric utility. Fortunately, for the people of New York, Kessel can be removed from office at NYPA’s annual trustees meeting this Tuesday, March 31, 2009. According to Article IV Section 2 of NYPA By-laws, the President and CEO must be reappointed at the annual trustees meeting. By-laws Article III-Section 5 reads:

At all Trustees’ meetings, the presence of four Trustees shall be necessary to constitute a quorum and shall be sufficient for the transaction of business. Any act shall be sufficient for the transaction of business if such four Trustees are in agreement and any act of such four Trustees present at a meeting and which constitutes a quorum shall be an act of the Trustees.

This means that yea votes of 4 trustees are required for election of NYPA’s President. At this time there are five NYPA trustees and two vacancies. Kessel must receive four of the five votes if he is to be elected President. (Last fall the trustee vote for Kessel was four to two in his favor.) If the two upstate Trustees vote “No,” the Kessel-NYPA nightmare will end.

Finally, in talking with The Buffalo News editorial board on the record last week, Kessel made a fundamental mistake that any intern with business experience or anyone who has spent any time attracting businesses would avoid. Kessel mentioned Camden Wire and Goya as businesses that might leave the State and also threw in public mini-mill steel manufacturer, Nucor, as another that was looking for aid. Apart from State law and regulation that require that confidential information like that not be cavalierly thrown into the public square, an ounce of common sense would suggest that these businesses and their employees and customers would prefer that they not be discussed in public by a Long Island-based pol in on-the-record meetings.