Editorial
EDITORIAL: Now, federal money for Calverton rail spur is good
Campaign rhetoric often becomes inoperative soon after the inauguration. In Riverhead, Supervisor-elect Sean Walter has set a record for rapid reversal. On the issue of a rail spur that will help business at Calverton, he was bizarrely wrong in opposing federal funding in late October. Now, after his victory, but weeks before his inauguration, he's correct. Go figure.
During the campaign, Supervisor Phil Cardinale was all for rehabilitating the 2.65-mile spur once used by Grumman at its Calverton plant, but long out of service. Some businesses decided to move to the Calverton enterprise park in large part because the spur existed and could be rehabilitated. Bringing freight to and from Calverton is a lot less expensive by rail than by truck, and a lot easier on the environment.
But Walter threw red meat to supporters by saying that accepting federal dollars for it would involve taking "Chinese Communist money." OK, so Washington depends on China a lot these days. But fixing this spur, owned by the town's Community Development Agency, is still important.
Empire State Development, the state's economic development arm, provided $650,000 for engineering and construction. Now, with a big push from Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Tim Bishop (D-Southampton), Gov. David A. Paterson has certified $4.8 million in stimulus money for it.
This is good news for a town that needs all it can get. It's nice of Walter to get around to calling it exciting. hN
