Community, Lawmakers Talk Hashamomuck Cove Study, Need to Address 'Urgent' Situation As Erosion Worsens

SOUTHOLD, NY — It was a day of victory for the crowd of neighbors gathered at the home of Lynn Laskos on Hashamomuck Cove in Southold Thursday.

For years, Laskos has been imploring elected officials for help as storms continue to batter the Hashamomuck Cove shoreline, leading to severe beach erosion and breaches that threaten County Road 48, just feet from her home and a vital evacuation route for residents in the event of a hurricane or emergency.

After years of hard work, Congressman Lee Zeldin, member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, as well as Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell and other local elected officials and community residents, gathered to discuss the release of the Hashamomuck Cove draft feasibility study and the proposed project slated to begin.

Before the meeting, Laskos showed Zeldin photos that were hung on her home, of the damage she and other property owners have incurred after violent storms. At one point, she said, water came up through her second story window. "There was seaweed on our bed," she said.

Since her family first purchased the home with Sound views on County Road 48 in the 1960s, the shoreline out front has shrunk from 150 feet to 38 feet, at high tide. During one storm over the years, residents, she said, opened their doors and the water rushed out onto County Road 48.

"It's not if, but when" disaster will strike, paralyzing Route 48, the only emergency evacuation route for points east, and crippling utilities, she said.

And the time is now to act, she said. Should the project be put on the back burner for years, the outcome is simple. "We won't be here," she said.

Zeldin encouraged residents to participate in the public comment period that has already begun, with an eye toward rallying government agencies to secure the remaining funding needed to kick off the work.

On August 12, 2016, he said, the U.S. Army of Corps of Engineers released the Draft Integrated Feasibility Report & Environmental Assessment, which outlines the proposed coastal storm risk management project for Hashamomuck Cove.

The proposed project, which is currently estimated to cost $17,749,000, would encompass 1.5 miles of developed coast on the Long Island Sound, including 58 residential structures and two commercial properties.

Congressman Zeldin highlighted the details of the project, announcing that the proposed project, which is broken down into three parts: the West Cove, Central Cove, and East Cove, includes plans to build a 25-foot berm in the West Cove, a variable-width berm between 25 to 75 feet in the Central Cove, and a 25-foot berm in the East Cove.

Overall, 160,000 cubic yards of sand would be needed to enhance the coastline, including 34,000 cubic yards in the West Cove, 56,000 cubic yards in the Central Cove, and 70,000 cubic yards in the East Cove.

The initial planning and engineering costs will be covered 100 percent by the federal government, Zeldin said.

The initial construction cost share would be covered 65 percent with federal funding — with 35 percent still needed to be provided by a non-federal partner at the town, county and or state level, Zeldin said.

The cost of re-nourishment over the long term, 50 year life of the project will be shared 50/50 by the federal government and a non-federal source.

Public/private partnership or possible taxing district pitched

When asked if a public private partnership or corporate sponsorship was a possibility, to generate between $6 and $7 million in funding for the remaining 35 percent needed, Zeldin said he'd go back to the ACOE to find answers.

After the press conference, Russell told Patch that while he was not sure if it the federal government would allow for a private partner to step up with the funding, "Given the urgency of the situation I am sure that any legal hurdles can be overcome."

The supervisor added that he believes utility companies should be included in the discussion, "since they have a vested interest in fortifying their infrastructure. Currently, PSE&G has been working on a large scale project focusing on fortifying their electric assets throughout the town including new poles, etc. This project would dovetail nicely to those goals."

Russell also put another alternative on the proverbial table.

"One thing we should at least contemplate, although it will not be well received, is a special Hashamomock Cove Improvement District that would put some nominal costs on the properties most benefiting from the project," he said.

Encouraging public participation

Zeldin said residents should participate in a public hearing scheduled for Southold Town Hall September 19, 2016; the time has yet to be determined.

He also announced that the comment period has been extended to September 30, 2016. Residents can also submit public comments by mail to: Ms. Judith Johnson, the Project Biologist, at the New England District Corps of Engineers, 696 Virginia Road, Concord, MA 01742-2751, or by e-mail to: Judith.L.Johnson@usace.army.mil.

Looking to the future to prevent disaster

“Completion of the project at Hashamomuck Cove is not only important to protect homes and businesses, but also to safeguard our infrastructure, including County Road 48, a critical roadway for transportation, the economy, as well as a critical evacuation route in the case of an emergency," Zeldin said.

Once the public comment period closes on September 30, he said, all of the public comments will be considered for incorporation in the final report and submitted to the Army Corps Chief for his approval by April, 2017.

The current scheduled timeline, Zeldin said, is that a project partnership agreement will be executed with the non-federal sponsor by July, 2017 and the contract will be awarded by January, 2018, with construction is then expected to begin in 2018 and take between seven and 10 months.

"Southold is a coastal community and protecting our coastline is essential to protecting our communities," Russell said. "The completion of the Hashamomuck Cove Study was a vital first step in the effort to protect a cove from eroding to a point where it would be unrecoverable."

He lauded Zeldin for so quickly working to address a problem that has plagued residents in the community for years. "The work is not done. It is important for the public to have their voices heard during the public comment period to ensure that this critical project keeps moving forward," Russell said.

Southold Town Councilwoman Jill Doherty said back when she was a trustee, Laskos came to her and has been an impassioned advocate for her neighbors and the community. “This project is not only important for the residents at Hashamomuck to save their homes that have been in their families for generations, but also for everyone else that lives, visits, and passes through Southold to get to Connecticut by the ferry."

Southold, she reminded, has only two roads in and out of town.

Also present at the meeting was Southold Town Trustee Nick Krupski, who thanked Laskos for her commitment to the project.