Pipeline Proposal: A Swing and a Miss?

Yankee Gas representatives stepped to the plate on Tuesday night at and were looking to knock one out of the park. Instead, their presentation to the on the benefits of natural gas and the construction of a gate station in Waveny Park, wilted on the warning track. Many New Canaan residents who attended the pubic hearing, thought the Yankee Gas pitch left a lot to be desired. 

"There were a lot of generalities in the proposal. There is a lot more work to be done here," said Skip Hobbs, a New Canaan resident who is a petroleum geologist. "They already know the volumes of gas. I want to know those volumes because they go into the equation of what it's going to cost to the community."

In a power point presentation, Yankee Gas tried to emphasize the cost efficiency of natural gas and the safety of it as it passes through a pipeline in New Canaan. However, they admitted they didn't have hard numbers because a site for the gate station had not yet been agreed upon.

"This was just a preliminary proposal," said Michael Collins, manager of sales for Yankee Gas. "We can give a more detailed report when we have a definitive location for the site." 

is the preferred choice of Yankee Gas to be the home of the gate station that would tap into the that runs through part of New Canaan. The gate station would feed natural gas to five "anchor" buildings via 6,000 feet of pipeline. The buildings in the proposal, all in the vicinity of Waveny Park are  , , , , and . 

According to Yankee Gas, the gate station would be able to accommodate natural gas supplies to the entire town in the future. Still, many who attended the meeting were disappointed by the lack of specifics.

"They offered no details," said George McEvoy, of New Canaan. "I smell a rat and the previous rat died recently which was the push for CCRC in the Park. Why do they need a site until people in town decide whether they want natural gas or not."

That won't come for a while,  but at one least one person is pretty adamant that natural gas is the way to go for people in New Canaan.

"Like any utility,  if it's done right, it's safe, " said . "All things we do every day have a risk. Natural gas has been around for years and the rest of the country doesn't even know what fuel oil is."

Yankee Gas won't get the green light to supply New Canaan with natural gas or build a gate station until the Planning and Zoning commission gets , and that just might take awhile.