Bellone Cuts Canon a Deal in First Official Bill

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone’s first official bill signing is to give a 50-percent discount to Canon U.S.A Inc. for sewer connection fees at its new headquarters under construction in Melville.

Bellone signed off on a bill, authored by Suffolk County Legis. Lou D’Amaro, D-Huntington Station, which codifies a fair sewer connection fee agreement for Canon's new national headquarters in Melville. The legislation establishes a two-phase sewer connection fee structure for the project, in which Canon will pay a reduced rate of $15 per gallon of discharge for the first phase and the current rate of $30 per gallon of discharge for the second phase. 

The bill also incentivizes the construction of a new 200,000 square foot expansion to the 668,296 square foot facility that is presently being built.

“I am proud that the first bill I signed into law will help create good-paying Suffolk County jobs,” Bellone said in a statement.  “Working together with the Legislature, we will make sure Suffolk becomes competitive once again in order to attract new and better paying jobs.  By leveling the playing field for companies that are looking to invest in Suffolk County, we’re investing in our county’s collective future.”

Canon U.S.A. officially broke ground on its new American headquarters in May 2010. The project is slated to be constructed in two phases with the 668,296 square foot first phase scheduled for completion in early 2013. At that time, the company will relocate 1,200 employees from its current Lake Success facility to Melville. The 200,000 square foot second phase, which has received preliminary Town of Huntington approvals, will commence a few years later. The company has said that it aims to create 750 jobs within 10 years of opening.   

The fee structure is a fair compromise given the fact that when Canon first purchased the property, the sewer connection fee at the time was $15 per gallon. Six prior applications for sewer connections at the exact same location were also approved at the $15 per gallon level. When the rate was subsequently raised to $30 per gallon in 2008, Canon did not receive the requisite certification in time due to pending litigation associated with the property that prevented any approvals from moving forward.

“Canon was a victim of circumstances beyond its control,” D’Amaro said in a statement. “The delays resulting from outside litigation caused the company to miss an arbitrary deadline, even though it was abundantly clear they purchased the property when the rate was $15 per gallon and fully intended to enter into a connection agreement at that level. Canon was one of the only companies in Suffolk that fell into this connection fee limbo and I felt it was matter of fairness that this abnormality be corrected. The County Public Works Department even realized this fact when they signed off on an agreement that permitted Canon to seek this fee relief through the Legislature. In short, they were legally entitled to request this action.”

Although Canon was entitled to seek the fee reduction for the first half of the project, D’Amaro negotiated a payment up front for both phases, even though the latter phase will not be constructed for several years. He said that the bill will immediately net the County $378,570, which under normal circumstances would not have been received until the second phase began. The non-refundable up-front payment also serves as an added monetary incentive for the company to definitively proceed with the second expansion phase. 

As a result of the fee agreement, the County will receive $1,059,285 in total revenue, the legislator said. The county legislature's Office of Budget Review said there will be no impact on the sewer rates of existing district residents as a result of the Canon connection.     

“Simply put, this legislation is a tremendous benefit to Suffolk County,” D’Amaro said.

“Canon’s relocation to Melville is projected to inject between $700 million and $1.3 billion into the local economy, proving once again that the Route 110 corridor is the economic engine of Long Island," he added. "I applaud my legislative colleagues for approving the bill and County Executive Bellone for promptly signing it into law, thereby sending a clear message that Suffolk County is open for business.”