Storm resiliency projects proposed

A little more than a year after Gov. Andrew Cuomo established the NY Rising Community Reconstruction Program for areas damaged by Tropical Storms Irene and Lee and Hurricane Sandy, five local committees hosted a final joint public-engagement meeting on May 8 to bring residents up to speed on the various projects that could be on tap.

In Baldwin, potential projects include improving the downtown’s resiliency during and after storms, studies to assess drainage and raising certain roads.

CRP planning committees from Baldwin, Bellmore/Merrick, Freeport, Seaford/Wantagh and Massapequa gathered at the Norman J. Levy Lakeside School in Merrick. Since last fall, the various committees have solicited public input on how they should spend the funds that were allocated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Program.

Baldwin and Baldwin Harbor were awarded $10.6 million. Baldwin’s committee, co-chaired by David Viana of the Baldwin Civic Association and Erik Mahler of the Chamber of Commerce, assisted by consultants hired by the state, has identified projects its members believe would be most beneficial to the community.

The group would like to fund a comprehensive drainage study at Silver Lake Park and also implement storm protection features in Baldwin Park to create a promenade and minimize further erosion and damage, among other community projects.

Members of the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery will review each CRP committee’s plan and meet with those who will actually receive and disburse the funds. Entities like the Town of Hempstead and Nassau County will solicit bids from contractors and oversee the work. To help get the projects under way, grant managers will be hired to help the committees file the necessary paperwork.

HUD, which pledged $190 million in funding for Long Island’s 21 CRPs, will have the final say on every project before it is implemented.

“We have to get the municipalities, the local government on board and really committed to bringing it forward,” Viana said of Baldwin’s proposed projects. “That’s going to be the next step.