Board of Trustees Round-Up: Flood Roundtable, Disaster Aid, Palmer Avenue Clean-Up

Missed last night's meeting? Scarsdale Patch is keeping you in the loop with the assistance of Mayor Miriam Levitt-Flisser, who provided us with a helpful round-up of last night's agenda:

Editor's Note: The following contents have been submitted by Levitt-Flisser and are written from her perspective. 

Flood Roundtable 

I attended a Flood Roundtable with Representatives from US Army Corps of Engineers, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Federal Emergency Management Agency and NY State Office of Emergency Management, hosted by US Congressman Nita Lowey, on Oct. 3, 2011.

The focus was "the development of best practices and recommendations for prevention of flood damage in the short term." The agenda included "steps that municipalities may take to prevent and mitigate flood damage in our region and efforts to work together to address these challenges." There was also discussion of requirements to obtain funds, permitting and outstanding Federal assistance. 

It was noted that in the event that life is threatened, municipalities may work under emergency conditions and no permitting is needed. In some instances, general permits for municipal work may be granted in 24 hours from overseeing agencies a few hundred of these permits were granted in our county in the last few months.) Long term projects, however, may not be accelerated for emergency mitigation, in view of downstream areas that these interventions may endanger 

A FEMA-approved five year "Hazard Mitigation Plan" is required to obtain government funds for projects and planning. These grants are awarded on a competitive basis, and may involve long term risk reduction. 

Mr William Gorton of the NY State Department of Transportation, Westchester Division, reported on a project to decreases incidence of  frequently flooded roads at 11 locations (including the Hutchinson River Parkway, and in our area, the Sprain and the Saw Mill). Hazard mitigation plans may also include severe conditions, such as cold, besides flooding. 

FEMA – Disaster Aid

FEMA will be canvassing the area to ensure that all eligible residents and businesses apply for disaster aid. The deadline for residents and businesses to apply is October 31, 2011. The first step is to register by calling FEMA’s registration number at 1-800-621-3362 or online. For those with speech or hearing disabilities, the TTY number is 1-800-462-7585. 

1 Palmer Avenue – Environmental Clean-up

The Village recieved communication from Ecosystems Strategies, Inc., which is the environmental consultation company retained by Heathcote Corners—II, LLC to conduct the environmental clean-up at 1 Palmer Ave., Scarsdale.  The communication was prepared by Ecosystems Strategies, Inc., and was approved for distribution by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC). The purpose of the communication is to notify the Board that Heathcote Corners—II, LLC has applied to the NYSDEC’s Brownfield Cleanup Program and as a part of the application process Heathcote Corners—II, LLC has submitted a “Remedial Work Plan” and a “Proposed Decision Document." The NYSDEC invites public comment on both of the submitted documents. The duration of the public comment period is 30 days, from Oct. 1^st- 30^th, and the documents are available for review at the Scarsdale Public Library.