NYC NOW - Evening Roundup: Congressmembers Denied Entry at Brooklyn Detention Center, Polling for NJ’s Governor’s Race, and a Resurrected Pipeline Plan

Episode Date: August 6, 2025

New York City Representatives Nydia Velazquez, Adriano Espaillat, and Dan Goldman were looking to conduct an oversight visit at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn but were turned away. Plus, New Jersey’s gubernatorial race continues to tighten. And finally, New York’s climate law calls for the retirement of fossil fuel infrastructure. But that’s not stopping a natural gas giant from resurrecting a pipeline plan that was already rejected by the state nearly a decade ago.

New York City Congress members denied entry at a Brooklyn detention center, polling for New Jersey's governor's race, and a resurrected pipeline plane. From WMYC, this is NYC Now. I'm Jene Pierre. This is a federal criminal detention center where more than 10 people have died within the last five years. New York City Congressman Dan Goldman and two of his colleagues were refused to mission to inspect a federal prison housing immigration detainees. Goldman joined representatives Nadia Velasquez and Adriano Espayat Wednesday morning to conduct an oversight visit at the

Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Congress members are allowed to conduct unannounced oversight visits of immigration detention centers. Goldman says they were told they were denied entry because the facility is run by the Federal Bureau of Prisons, rather the Department of Homeland Security. This is the stuff of authoritarian fascist governments, where they hide people based on fictional reasons and prevent any oversight and accountability. A prison spokesperson says the lawmakers would be granted access with proper notice of their visits. In New Jersey, the upcoming gubernatorial race continues to tighten. But no matter which way it goes, the election will have big implications for the Garden State. WMYC's Mike Hayes,

has more. In the New Jersey race for governor, recent polls show Democrat Mikey Charles' once-healthy 20-point lead over Republican Jack Chittarelli reduced to just six points. The four-term Congresswoman is seeking to do something rare in the state, win a third consecutive governor's term for her party. But in New Jersey, it's also typical the president's party loses in the governor's race the year after taking the White House. Chittarelli is hoping to break this norm. He'd be the first Republican governor since Chris Christie. A natural gas giant is resurrecting a pipeline plan that was already rejected by New York state leaders a decade ago.

The project faces opposition from lawmakers, but now it has support from the White House. More on that after the break. New York's climate law calls for the retirement of fossil fuel infrastructure in the Empire state. But that's not stopping a natural gas giant known as the Williams Company from resurrecting a pipeline plan that was already rejected by the state nearly a decade ago. The project faces stiff opposition, but it does have the support of President Trump, and that's changing the dynamic this time around.

WMYC's Rosemary Misdary is covering the story. All right, Rosemary, so what's the deal with this proposed pipeline? The proposed pipeline is called the Northeast Supply Enhancement. It's nicknamed as Nessie. It calls for 17 and a half miles of new 26-inch diameter pipes, offshore near the Rockaways in Staten Island. They're also planning an additional 10 miles in New Jersey, and it's bringing in fracked gas from Pennsylvania.

It was originally introduced in 2017, and this is a resurrection of that old project. Yeah, you said that it was resurrected. The state did reject this, and they have the power to do that under federal water quality laws. So tell me what's different this time around? This time the project has

massive backing from President Donald Trump. Many people I interviewed think that this pipeline is a quid pro quo between the president and the governor. We get some offshore wind in exchange for a pipeline. But the state has one ace in the whole, and that is the Clean Water Act. That's why it was unsuccessful the first time, because the project could not prove that it could meet water quality standards. And part of that is because they're excavating the ocean floor and the sediment on the ocean floor is deeply contaminated. It has lead. It has arsenic.

It has mercury, copper. And the activities to build this pipeline will suspend all of that sediment back into the ocean and will pollute the waters. There's been a lot of talk about New York's climate law and the state's zero emission goals. Does this pipeline project run afoul of that at all? the state climate law calls for 70% renewable power by the end of this decade, and zero emissions energy by 2040. But there's nothing specifically in the law that forbids fossil fuel. I spoke to Daniel Zerrilli, the former chief climate policy advisor for New York City under Mayor Bill de Blasio. DEC went through a pretty rigorous permitting process, and literally nothing has changed about this project.

And so it's really awkward for DEC to think about resurrecting a review process and coming to a different conclusion. He also says that continued reliance on natural gas will get in the way of fulfilling the state climate law. And you can't reduce emissions the way the state wants by continued use of fossil fuels. Let's talk about investment. Who's paying for this project? New York and New Jersey residents, you and me. And according to an old estimate that was done for the original proposal in 2020, it's going to cost about a billion dollars, which translates to $200 million paid collectively

by New Yorkers on their utility bills for the next 15 years. And when we talk about the next 15 years, that's after we were supposed to have retired the fossil fuel infrastructure. But that estimate is old. And when I spoke to the researcher who did the analysis, she told me that she wouldn't be surprised if it doubled. So energy bills will go up. But the the company still has to justify the project to the Public Service Commission to approve that rate hike. That's right. And how are they justifying this project? National Grid, which provides natural gas to the region, says they needed to meet growing demand for heating in the winter. But this only amounts to a couple of days each year. And buildings are supposed to electrify. So demand should be

going down. The state agency that's tasked with energy planning just releases 15-year draft plan. And one of the big takeaways from that report is that the state will continue to rely on fossil fuels. And they even recommend continued investment in fossil fuel infrastructure, which is a big departure from what they were saying before Hockel took office. And one thing to remember is that currently New York City's grid is powered by more than 90 percent fossil fuel. And there are other ways of meeting peak demand. Experts say you can use thermostats and mirror control at the utility level. Why is there so much opposition to this Nessie project? Aside from the ecological and environmental impacts of the project and also rising utility costs, there's a sense among

advocates, lawmakers and experts that the utopia of a future New York that is pollution-free and sustainable, as laid out in the state climate law, is slipping a away. And the administration isn't doing enough fast enough. The state has been behind every step of the way, from spelling out the rules and enforcement to building renewables. I spoke to New York Senator Pete Harkham, who is firmly against this project. This is concerning that we are walking backwards. It's a public health issue, but it's an affordability issue. If people want to talk about affordability, the way to drive affordability is through renewables. because the math shows a kilowatt of clean energy is far cheaper than a kilowatt of carbon-based or nuclear energy.

All right. So what does Governor Kathy Hokel say to all this? Hokel's response to the pipeline proposal is, we will follow the law. But her office declined to comment when I asked recently. And despite pleas for more than 120 environmental groups to hold public hearings and to extend the comment period from 30 days to 120 days, her administration only extended the period by 10 days until August 16th, with no public hearings. Opponents say that means she's trying to rush through the approval

with as little public involvement as possible. And Williams plans to start building by the end of this year and have pipelines and service by winter 2027. That's WMYC's Roe. Mary Minister. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WMYC. I'm Jene Pierre. We'll be back tomorrow.