Kearney said she didn’t believe the county would reveal the details of the contract until it becomes public record, and added that she hoped it would address noise and odor, and stipulate that residents living near the plants would be notified about any unusual circumstances or work at the facilities.

“I think for the most part, the devil is in the contract,” she said. “We would very much like to address the quality-of-life issues, and for the contract to be fully vetted by the Legislature and the Nassau County Interim Finance Authority.” She said that she and other representatives of the Bay Park Civic Association, as well as other concerned citizens, would be there when the contract goes to the Legislature for approval.

Building a wall at Bay Park
The Bay Park Sewage Plant will become a County-owned fortress-style facility when work begins to build a protective concrete wall and berm around the facility to protect it against possible future storm surges.
Situated just yards from the bay, the plant was hit with a 9-foot tidal surge and knocked out of service for two days after Superstorm Sandy, dumping millions of gallons of raw and partially treated sewage into Reynolds Channel in the six weeks after the storm — the worst sewage overflow in New York and the second-worst in the Northeast, according to scientific researchers at ClimateCentral.org. Another 3 million gallons of partially treated sewage were released the following May, the result of an hour-long power outage at the plant. Sewer system pipes ruptured in Baldwin and East Rockaway, sending raw sewage into dozens of homes.
Grace Industries of Plainview was awarded the bid to do the work, which should start next week. This is the same company that rebuilt the Long Beach boardwalk for $44.2 million.
The project is expected to cost $37.2 million.