Brookhaven Town, Patchogue Village Form Joint Partnership in Seeking Additional Sewer Funds

Brookhaven Supervisor Ed Romaine and Patchogue Village Mayor Paul Pontieri today were joined by county, town and village officials to lobby for $26.4 million in available funds to extend sewer projects in Patchogue and in Mastic near the Forge River. Romaine and Pontieri issued a joint letter to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, thanking the Governor for his leadership in providing funding for sewers to protect Long island’s groundwater and waterways and provide an incentive for economic development. The two officials pointed out that while residents in Mastic and Babylon approved a recent referendum for sewer projects in their communities, residents in Great River rejected a similar plan for their area. Romaine and Pontieri wrote in their letter that the $26.4 million earmarked for Great River could be reallocated to Patchogue and the Mastic project, expanding the environmental and economic benefit for those areas. Pictured left to right are Patchogue Village Superintendent of Public Works Joe Dean; Trustees Thomas Ferb and Joseph Keyes; Deputy Mayor Jack Krieger; Mayor Pontieri; Supervisor Romaine; Deputy Supervisor, Councilmen Dan Panico and Councilman Neil Foley. “An effective use of the $26.4 million in funds that were rejected by Great River voters would be to partially fund Phase 3 of the Mastic/Forge River sewer project and to expand sewers in the Village of Patchogue. These projects are already engineered. A site for a sewage treatment plant on Town of Brookhaven land is available for the Forge River project. Patchogue has long had its own sewage treatment plant, and both the Mastic and Patchogue communities (Mastic in a vote just this week), have shown their support for sewers,” they wrote in the letter. Supervisor Romaine said, “I commend the residents who voted overwhelmingly to fund Phase 1 and 2 of the plan to sewer the Mastic Peninsula. But, we must look at the bigger picture to secure the money available that will allow us to complete Phases 3 and 4 without over-burdening to the local taxpayers. I am confident that the Governor, Mayor Pontieri and I share the same concerns about water quality and we all recognize Patchogue Village as a model of how economic growth and protecting the environment can go hand-in-hand. This is a game changer for the future of Mastic and the Forge river.” Mayor Pontieri said, “Supervisor Romaine and I stand together in support of the reallocation of the sewer funding. In the Village of Patchogue, we are currently in the planning stages to sewer over 500 homes located in environmentally sensitive areas along the Patchogue River and Great South Bay. This will give us the opportunity to sewer additional homes as well as move ahead with upgrades and future expansion of our sewer plant. Local economic growth is tied directly into our sewer infrastructure and it is imperative that we continue to make improvements to our system. I ask the Governor to consider our request, so we can move ahead with these projects.” Councilman Panico said, “Brookhaven and Patchogue have always shared a common vision for a cleaner environment and vibrant economy. We are partners in this effort and value our strong relationship.” Councilman Neil Foley said, “The Supervisor and Mayor have a history of cooperation to help make the Town and Village better places to live. I am in full support of their request to the Governor and I expect that he will give it serious consideration.” County Legislator Sunderman said, “We are so happy the sewer referendum was successful. This will allow for economic development in our area as well improve our environment. This was a once in a life time opportunity and I am very excited to be part of this accomplishment. I’ve already requested to explore the connection of the Mastic Beach Business District into phases 1 and 2 and have already requested grant funding for phases 3 and 4. We are looking forward to the start of this project in 2020 and more to come in the future. It would be a great opportunity to receive additional funding for our already designed project which was earmarked for use in Suffolk County.