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March 28, 2004Tondu violated Manistee's trustBY GERARD GRABOWSKIOn Oct. 9, 2003, Joe Tondu of Houston, Texas, introduced his Northern Lights Project to the Manistee community. Attending this public relations event were key decision-makers from the Manistee city and county governments. Joe Tondu in his opening remarks stated: "There are two approaches we could have chosen. We could have tried to sneak around the public and get things done without people knowing. However, we wanted to be totally open about this." Certain events are worth noting as the Manistee City Planning Commission and City Council prepare to make decisions regarding the Tondu Corp.'s proposal to build a 425-megawatt, coal-fired electrical plant in the City of Manistee. First, Tondu Corp. representatives failed to reveal that tax-exempt municipal utilities were paying his corporation to develop the plant. Documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act reveal that the Tondu Corp.'s plan was to secure the necessary permits from Manistee, sell his plan to the Michigan Public Power Agency and the Michigan South Central Power Agency and then reveal that this facility was to be owned by tax-exempt municipalities. It was only through the suspicions of Manistee officials and citizens that this plan to avoid paying local taxes was discovered. Second, on Feb. 19, Joe Tondu made the following statement during a public hearing regarding this issue: "Tondu Corp. has not entered into any contracts or agreements regarding the Northern Lights proposal." The following week, the citizen Aurora Association submitted for the public record the nine-page Cooperative Agreement signed by Tondu Corp., the Michigan Public Power Agency and the Michigan South Central Power Agency regarding their contractual obligations in developing the plant. Third, on March 13, the Tondu Corp. chose to violate the trust of confidential negotiations with the City of Manistee regarding a community service fee. By releasing to the Manistee News Advocate an outline of the terms of these negotiations, the Tondu Corp. is attempting to unduly influence public opinion, the city council and planning commission, as the city prepares for an upcoming referendum vote on a wastewater treatment expansion and its deadline for issuing a decision on the Northern Lights special use permit. Finally, the negotiations that Tondu is engaged in with the city of Manistee on behalf of the power agencies is an attempt by a privately-owned corporation to use publicly-owned power agencies as proxy owners to avoid legally mandated corporate taxes. In particular, a Michigan Public Power Agency official has repeatedly told the Aurora Association that Tondu cannot negotiate any Community Services Fee on the agency's behalf. The Tondu Corp. is seeking an arrangement where the power agencies would own the electrical facility but Tondu would retain 40 percent of the plant's output. The Tondu Corp. is attempting to avoid nearly $10 million of annual tax obligations through this legally questionable arrangement. A project with such far-reaching economic and environmental implications requires a relationship based on mutual trust. The Tondu Corp. has not been forthcoming about their intentions and has violated the trust of Manistee. About the author Gerard Grabowski, of Bear Lake, is one of eight founding members of The Aurora Association, founded in the Fall of 2003 to research the Northern Lights Project. They advocate for an informed and active citizenry. About the forum The forum is a periodic column of opinion written by Record-Eagle readers in their areas of interest or expertise. Submissions of 500 words or less may be made. Please include biographical information and a photo.
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