Lowey Announces Start of Flood Mitigation Efforts in Westchester

Flood mitigation work on the Mamaroneck and Sheldrake Rivers in the Village of Mamaroneck by the Army Corps of Engineers will be starting soon, according to a July 26 press release from Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-Westchester/Rockland).

Other river basins, including those of the the Saw Mill River, Bronx River, Hutchinson River and Byram River, as well as Blind Brook, and their tributaries will also be targeted by the Army Corps in its mitigation efforts across Westchester County.

"I'm pleased that the Army Corps of Engineers has moved quickly and is already working on building a long-term flood mitigation plan for Westchester County," Lowey said in her announcement. "Too many lives and businesses have been turned upside down too many times by flooding across our region," she continued. "The millions of dollars I secured in the Emergency Supplemental laid the framework for this announcement, and I commend the Army Corps for its fast action in undertaking what will certainly be a difficult but necessary challenge."

Mamaroneck Village Mayor Phil Trifiletti expressed gratitude to Lowey in a July 26 phone conversation and told this newsletter that the initiative "will go a long way toward starting the process of alleviating the impact of flooding in the Village of Mamaroneck. However," he noted, "this is only one issue in a puzzle that has many pieces."

In May of this year, Lowey helped obtain funding for flood mitigation projects in the federal Supplemental Appropriations bill, which provided $8.165 million for the Army Corps to begin work on long-term flood mitigation projects in the parts of New York affected by the April floods. "This initial process," her statement explained, "will involve engaging local officials, surveying the impacted waterways and proposing flood damage solutions," as well as determining and preparing for the necessary structural changes to prevent future flooding.

Trifiletti said he would report back to harringtononline about exactly what first steps the Corps will be taking in Mamaroneck and when the process here will begin.