Edison Changes Suez Water Proposal Ahead Of Special Election

EDISON, NJ — After months of public outcry, Edison has amended its proposal to have Suez take control of the water system ahead of a vote on the issue.

Under a new proposed agreement, announced Tuesday night, Suez would be contracted to run the Edison Township water system for 25 years, down from an original term of 40 years. A provision that would allow Suez and KKR (known jointly as Edison Environmental Partners) to recover its equity upon the partnership's default would be eliminated.

Additionally, the new proposal will allow the Township to appoint commissioners to oversee Suez and KKR. "This will be a board with gravitas, one where the members from our community, will have oversight and input on decisions and operations," Edison Mayor Tom Lankey

First announced in February, the original proposal has been deeply unpopular with some Edison residents. Nearly 5,000 residents signed a petition this spring calling for Edison to retain public control over its water and sewer systems; after Edison did not move to retain control, the petition triggered a ballot question this fall asking residents to vote on water and sewer control. That special election is scheduled for Sept. 10.

The rest of the Suez proposal remains basically the same: Suez is promising a cap on rates for the first seven years, a senior freeze, and annual concession fees. The annual concession fees would be reduced by the equivalent to the reduction of years, officials said.

Those concession fees would be put towards air conditioning in schools, Lankey said. Over the course of the agreement, $30 million, including $5 million up front, would be put towards infrastructure improvement at the township schools. Those funds will be provided to the district by "encouraging the joint venture to make a contribution directly or through any other method available," officials said.

"My administration has heard the concerns from our community and we proactively sought
revisions to this deal," Lankey said. "As revised, the contract would substantially reduce the term of the agreement, but it will keep the senior freeze intact, add safeguards, and help provide
funding for an important need for the 17,000 children that use our public schools – air
conditioning."

Currently, Edison manages its own wastewater, and water is contracted out to American Water Co. At the time the proposal was announced, Lankey said the Suez partnership would take the burden off of the township to care for the aging system.

Concerns center around rate hikes, the privatization of the system, and worsening service.

"We urge the township council to delay its decision on the Suez concession deal until we, the voters, have had a chance to decide the future of our water and sewer systems at the ballot," said Keith Hahn, one of the driving forces behind the petition, said this spring. "It would be irresponsible for the township to invest more resources into pursuing a deal that could be invalidated at special election. It's our water, our vote."

In April, the town council voted 5-2 to not put the proposal up for a non-binding public vote. That proved to be an unpopular move: Michael Lombardi and Leonard Sendelsky, two current council members who voted against the public vote, lost local party support and then Tuesday's primary. They were defeated by a slate that included Joseph Coyle and Ajay Patil, the only two council members in support of the non-binding public vote.

Current council members apparently only learned of the amendments to the water proposal after media outlets received a press release about it Tuesday evening.

"Although I am gratified to see that many of the suggestions and ideas I had articulated over the last several months have been incorporated into a potential new agreement, I'm extremely dismayed to be learning about this only today, through a [news] website," Councilman Sam Joshi wrote on his public Facebook page. "As many of you know, one of the hallmarks of my tenure as a Council person has been full transparency. As such, be rest assured that if I would have learned about this sooner, I would have shared it with each of you. As I learn more, I will share with you directly."