How an Upstate Town Took Back Its Power
![Two men in hard hats work on a utility pole from cherry picker buckets in Massena, New York.](https://imgproxy.gridwork.co/MjYlsX9R4-q-b2D8RtifHRzdyYpw4dByIyEDukrfmVM/w:820/h:547/rt:fill/g:fp:0.5:0.5/q:90/f:jpg/el:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy51cy1lYXN0LTIuYW1hem9uYXdzLmNvbS9ueXNmb2N1cy9jcmV3LXVwLXRvcC5KUEc.jpg)
Massena residents fought the local utility to bring their electric grid under public control. Forty years later, they say it’s still paying off.
This is the first part of a two-part series on local public power in New York. Read the second installment, on the current fight in Rochester, here.
This is the first part of a two-part series on local public power in New York. Read the second installment, on the current fight in Rochester, here.
![Framed photo of the front page of The Massena Observer on May 31, 1974.](https://imgproxy.gridwork.co/3Q_qVOQa7Qjom2QkkzXN9dMSJRWSc85Do1hOavsP8lc/w:820/h:1093/rt:fill/g:fp:0.5:0.5/q:90/el:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy51cy1lYXN0LTIuYW1hem9uYXdzLmNvbS9ueXNmb2N1cy9NYXNzZW5hLW9ic2VydmVyLmpwZw.jpg)
![Eugene Nicandri stands outside the Massena Electric building in Massena, New York.](https://imgproxy.gridwork.co/_GfAAuV0atzn5-wORJJaxHh5I3VauSKGIpteeKWdkOk/w:820/h:547/rt:fill/g:fp:0.5:0.5/q:90/el:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy51cy1lYXN0LTIuYW1hem9uYXdzLmNvbS9ueXNmb2N1cy9HZW5lLU5pY2FuZHJpLW91dHNpZGUuSlBH.jpg)
![Brittany Horton stands before a counter wearing a Spanky's diner t-shirt.](https://imgproxy.gridwork.co/fwnujij7xdyDvoP20aPnFtaz-QiqwIdxvgukpfkE7UI/w:820/h:547/rt:fill/g:fp:0.5:0.5/q:90/el:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy51cy1lYXN0LTIuYW1hem9uYXdzLmNvbS9ueXNmb2N1cy9icml0dGFueS1ob3J0b24tc3Bhbmt5cy5KUEc.jpg)
“We were going up against the big guys.”
![Seated portrait of Andrew McMahon, superintendent of the Massena Electric Department.](https://imgproxy.gridwork.co/vTupYcHMmwez9Jvy3Dg4q3853w6AcZtdQ83Iu80uubg/w:820/h:547/rt:fill/g:fp:0.5:0.5/q:90/el:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy51cy1lYXN0LTIuYW1hem9uYXdzLmNvbS9ueXNmb2N1cy9BbmR5LU1jTWFob24uSlBH.jpg)
![Man sits in a crane and looks up at the bucket in Massena, New York.](https://imgproxy.gridwork.co/iik5EAUYtXBNSt1IgbXVJHKJmVWrWv1M9mi0n8VBaGg/w:820/h:547/rt:fill/g:fp:0.5:0.5/q:90/el:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy51cy1lYXN0LTIuYW1hem9uYXdzLmNvbS9ueXNmb2N1cy9EaWNrLW9wZXJhdGluZy1jcmFuZS5KUEc.jpg)
![Crew lifts a utility pole from a hole in the ground in Massena, New York.](https://imgproxy.gridwork.co/f7qm23_P-wfbhkQnWlC-ScuQdJvUYyxT6Cck-JGU0LA/w:820/h:547/rt:fill/g:fp:0.5:0.5/q:90/el:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy51cy1lYXN0LTIuYW1hem9uYXdzLmNvbS9ueXNmb2N1cy9wb2xlLWluLW1hc3NlbmEuSlBH.jpg)
From left: Dick Sheridan operates a crane; crew members replace a utility pole.
“Municipal utilities are kind of a petri dish. It’s not always good to be small, but being small sometimes is advantageous.”
Support for this story was provided by The Neal Peirce Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting journalism on ways to make cities and their larger regions work better for all people.
![](https://imgproxy.gridwork.co/G5bs5OcQns7UWk3rEuzFny4wnf6qwKIUatWESycfMCI/w:135/h:190/rt:fill/g:fp:0.5:0.5/q:90/f:jpg/el:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy51cy1lYXN0LTIuYW1hem9uYXdzLmNvbS9ueXNmb2N1cy9Db2xpbi1LaW5uaWJ1cmdoXzIwMjMtMDQtMjEtMDU0OTI5X3hxbHcuanBn.jpg)
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