Stream upgrades close portion of Valley Stream park

A $2 million storm-water-quality improvement project is underway in Valley Stream at two separate locations, with work at a third location set to start next month.

A federal grant, administered through Nassau County, is funding the project, which is expected to relieve flooding concerns at Mill Pond, the Village Green and Hendrickson Park.

The brunt of the work is being done at the north end of Hendrickson Park where crews are installing a “forebay,” which will collect sediment and debris, such as plastic bottles. The forebay will be placed just south of Hendrickson Avenue and block litter flowing through the stream from the north.

Thomas McAleer, the village’s building superintendent, said the forebay is a mat that allows water to pass through but prohibits debris and litter from doing the same. The forebay at the park will be 5,000 square feet and be cleaned out when needed by village crews, McAleer said.

When work began at the park on July 22, a quarter-mile stretch of the Hendrickson Park trail was closed. The closed section starts at the bridge just behind the Central High School track and goes until Hendrickson Avenue. McAleer said the trail is closed there to keep park-goers safe.

Despite some inconvenience, many of those park-goers look forward to seeing the completed project, including Frank DeRosa who has lived in Valley Stream for the last 45 years. He often goes to Hendrickson Park to play bocce or walk the trail.

DeRosa said the project should be good for the community, but would like to see the upgrades once completed. “When it’s finished and we see what it looks like, we can decide then,” he said of the project.

As part of Central’s graduating class in 1941, Charlie Ley remembers Hendrickson Park well before it was developed. Now a Mattituck resident, Ley said he doesn’t get to come to the park much anymore but awaits seeing the completed project.

McAleer estimated that the project would be completed in the coming months, but added it is too difficult to give an exact date because of weather concerns. “We want to get this done before the winter season starts,” he said.

Joanne Schiller, of Lynbrook, said she often comes to Hendrickson Park to walk the trail and added that she is excited to see the project upon completion.

Additional work at the park will include removing sand and silt that has built up along the bottom of the stream, the construction of a new retaining wall and the planting of vegetation along the stream banks. Core logs, which are shaved trees with carved out holes for plants, have started to be placed along the bank. The core logs retain water, which allows plant life to be sustainable. Small fencing stretches along the stream in order to protect the plant life, and it will remain there for two years, McAleer said.

When construction began at the park, tubes were place underground starting just south of Hendrickson Avenue in order to divert water further downstream. McAleer said this would provide crews an easier time to install the forebay.

In 2008, some work was done in Hendrickson Park, funded by a $360,000 state grant. Former Village Clerk Vinny Ang said that the current stream work picked up where the last project left off.

During the work in 2008, the stream banks, which had severely eroded over the years, were restored and a retaining wall was built. Ang said that the village actually received the $2 million grant during the first project, but it had to wait for the culvert-replacement project to be finished on Valley Stream Boulevard, which is part of the same stream system. That work was completed last October.

Work began at Mill Pond on Aug. 22 where a 10-foot forebay will be installed in the coming months. This forebay will be made out of rocks and have plant life on either side of it. “Anything that the trap doesn’t catch up by Sunrise Highway, we should catch it here and clean it out as well,” McAleer said of the Mill Pond forebay.

Construction at the Village Green is slated to begin in mid-October where new plants, matting and core logs will be placed.