(MINEOLA, N.Y.) – Nassau County Legislature committees voted on Monday, July 17 to authorize bonding an additional $15 million for a capital budget line that was used to fund sewer repairs on Lido Boulevard in Lido Beach and is currently being used to fund emergency repairs to Grand Avenue in Baldwin.
Legislators in the Public Works, Finance, and Rules Committee voted unanimously to approve the amendments to the 2023-2026 capital plan and dedicate those additional resources to the 35101 “lateral sewer repair” capital budget line. Funds from this line were tapped previously for the Lido Beach repairs and are being utilized for the Baldwin sinkhole project. They must be replenished to fund future urgent sewer repair projects in the County. Final approval for the additional bonding could come as soon as the scheduled Monday, Aug. 7 meeting of the full Legislature.
Repairs to Grand Avenue are nearing completion, DPW officials said. However, the incident marks the second time in less than a month that a sinkhole has severely damaged a major Nassau County roadway since the Lido Boulevard sinkhole occurred on May 31.
“This is the first of many significant investments that we must make in order to rebuild and reinforce Nassau County’s aging critical infrastructure,” Nassau County Legislator Debra Mulé (D – Freeport), whose district includes the portion of Grand Avenue impacted by the sinkhole, said. “As we look ahead to the 2024 capital plan, I am committed to ensuring that vital resources for road, sewer, and water infrastructure are our County’s top priorities.”
Earlier this month, in letters to New York Governor Kathy Hochul, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, and Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, Legislator Mulé expressed the critical need for additional resources to repair and upgrade Nassau County’s aging infrastructure. She also urged federal representatives to expedite the delivery of billions of dollars in federal aid that has been earmarked to New York State the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
“No part of our County or our region is immune from infrastructure failures like the ones we have experienced during the last month. When considered alongside the growing hazards posed by the impacts of climate change, these looming threats behoove us to act now,” Legislator Mulé wrote on July 3. “We must take decisive action to protect our environmental assets and secure the health and safety of all Nassau County residents by averting future catastrophes such as the ones that the residents of Baldwin and Lido Beach have endured.”