Rockland Receives $1.02 Million For Creek Project

NEW CITY, NY - The federal government has awarded the county $1.02 million to pay for repairs to the bank of the Minisceongo Creek in West Haverstraw. The grant, announced last week, covers repairs needed after Hurricane Irene. That was in 2011.

"This work is part of our ongoing efforts to maintain our infrastructure, including our streams and drainage areas," County Executive Ed Day said in the announcement. "This funding from FEMA relieves the burden on our taxpayers."

Day was at the site of the stream work Wednesday, where he was joined by Vincent Altieri, executive director of the Rockland County Drainage Agency, Charles "Skip" Vezzetti, Rockland County Highway Superintendent; Haverstraw Mayor Michael Kohut, West Haverstraw Mayor Robert R. D'Amelio, members of the Rockland County Conservation and Service Corps and others.

West Haverstraw and Haverstraw suffered extensive damage during Hurricane Irene in 2011 when the Minisceongo Creek overran its banks and flooded the area. The federal funding will pay for most of the project, which included a new retaining wall to stabilize the creek bank.

The Rockland County Drainage Agency has been working on several projects to mitigate future flooding.

A second project now underway that will be completed in the fall includes reconstruction of broken gabion baskets, stabilization of gabion baskets that are leaning into the creek, and soil nailing of these and other areas, according to Vincent Altieri, executive director of the Drainage Agency.

These improvements will be made in conjunction with related work completed by the county's partners, including the village of West Haverstraw. The village relocated a municipal storm drain downstream of the destabilized area.

PHOTO: Rockland County Drainage Agency Director Vincent Altieri, Rockland County Executive Ed Day and Rockland Conservation Corps members Michael Clements, Devon Kenny, Caitlin Golden, Kelcie Bogardus/ contributed