City Gets $3M To Kickstart Desperately Needed Sewer Work

MOUNT VERNON, NY — There is reason to celebrate in Mount Vernon as efforts to bring the city's woefully inadequate sewer system up to standards got a "supercharging boost."

Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer and U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman (NY-16) announced Friday that they have $3 million in federal funding for the City of Mount Vernon to combat its ongoing sewage and wastewater issues.

The funding is double the amount that the city asked for and will be put towards "supercharging" the process of hiring expert engineers to formulate a comprehensive plan for rebuilding the city's 100-year-old wastewater system.

"It's no secret that Mount Vernon has a sewage problem," Schumer told a crowd in Mount Vernon Friday. "What should be a basic right to everybody, access to clean water and a functioning sewage system has become a source of fear and stress for countless families throughout this great city of Mount Vernon." He described how after every rainfall, several Mount Vernon homes and businesses flood with wastewater and raw sewage and the problem has polluted the environment, by flowing into the Hutchinson River.

Mount Vernon Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard, Westchester County Executive George Latimer and residents who have been directly affected by the city's sewer issues were also present.

One resident, Linda McNeil, has had raw sewage back up into her home for 22 years.

Bowman stressed that McNeil "has been dealing with this for decades — not years, not months, not weeks — for decades because of the antiquated sewage system."

In December, 2021, it was announced that the infamously substandard sewers in Mount Vernon will get some much needed help, thanks in part to a grant from the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation Water Quality Improvement Project program.

The $10 million grant will provide funding for Mount Vernon's Wastewater Infrastructure Outfalls. The project will improve water quality in the Hutchinson River by upgrading Mount Vernon's municipal wastewater outfalls to prevent the discharge of raw sewage. An additional $75,000 supports the mapping of Mount Vernon's municipal separate storm sewer systems to prevent polluted runoff from affecting local communities and the environment.

"I believe this investment is a positive step forward for the City of Mount Vernon," Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard said in December. "We aren't tethered to legacy challenges; we are here to make solutions. Thank you to Governor Hochul, we look forward to work with your agencies to fix the problems we've inherited. The continued progress we've made in the last 18 months during this pandemic has shown the dedication our administration has to fixing our sewer issues. A day is coming soon where families do not have to worry about sewer backups impacting their quality of life."

With approximately 997,920 linear feet of sewer infrastructure throughout the city, Mount Vernon Department of Public Works Commissioner Damani Bush estimated the total cost to rehabilitate the entire system ranges from $124,740,000 to $199,584,000.

The $10 million grant was part of Gov. Kathy Hochul's announcement of more than $272 million in funding for projects that protect and improve water quality across NYS. The projects are expected to help significantly improve water quality, combat contributors to harmful algal blooms and update aging water infrastructure across the state.

"Our state's economic development goals cannot be achieved without clean water for drinking, recreation and the overall quality of life New Yorkers expect and deserve," Hochul said in December. "These sustained investments in water quality improve the health of our communities while creating economic opportunity through well paying, long lasting jobs."

SEE ALSO:

• Mount Vernon Will Get Largest Grant In City History For Sewers
• 'Third World Conditions' Found by Environmentalist On Sewer Tour
• US Sues City Whose Raw Sewage Flows Freely
• Cleaning Up Mount Vernon's DPW Yard
• More Pollution, Another Fine For Mount Vernon
• Feds Sue Mount Vernon To Force Sewer Cleanup