Federal funding may solve Main Street flooding problem

Northport Village Mayor Damon McMullen is eyeing an opportunity to receive federal grant funds for fixing an ongoing and damaging problem on Main Street: flooding.

On Tuesday, March 20, the mayor and village trustees worked quickly to submit a “Storm Water Runoff Proposal” to secure Federal Transportation and Infrastructure funding. Congressman Tom Suozzi’s office reached out to Village officials that morning and it was an all-hands-on-deck effort to get the application filled out and turned in by 4:30 the following afternoon.

At the Village meeting, Mayor McMullen said, “It would be a really good thing if we would be able to get this money, but as you know, everybody is trying to get that infrastructure money out of Washington that they say is coming down the pike.” He added, “It is a multi-multi-million dollar infrastructure project that we need to have done. When and if it should happen, it’ll be very disruptive, but when it’s over, it’ll be very helpful, especially to the environment, and to the businesses and residents in particular.”

The infrastructure grant program funds transportation projects of both national and regional significance in order to create good-paying jobs, improve safety, apply transformative technology, and explicitly address climate change and racial equity. The funding available for 2021 grants totals approximately $889 million.

To apply for the grant, the Village Board had to fill out an extensive application, which required letters of sponsorship from the community. In an effort to submit a strong application, Trustee Mercy Smith sent out a call to action. Residents, merchants, restaurant and business owners, and community groups were asked to write letters expressing their strong support for earmarking dollars for Northport.

At Tuesday evening’s Village Board meeting, Trustee Smith thanked the many individuals who responded with letters in support of the application.

The goals of the project include remedying the watershed flooding and storm water runoff that occurs in the Village, especially down Main Street. This improvement would promote clean waterways by preventing toxins, pesticides and other dangerous chemicals from entering the harbor through runoff. The water picks up and collects these potentially harmful pollutants and washes them into the harbor, contaminating the area every time there’s a heavy storm.

Improving the drainage and filtration infrastructure would also be part of the project, as another step to ensuring the safety of residents and preventing further damage to storefronts, businesses and homes.

Northport resident and creator of the Northport Anchor, Todd Latchford, spoke during the public participation portion of the meeting, saying, “I just want to thank everybody for the quick turnaround today for the stormwater runoff. It’s really an issue that’s been like 100 years going, so if we can nail this down, it would really be a great thing. Because it’s always a nightmare down here when it rains.”

Mayor McMullen said Village employees and trustees are all working hard to make the project happen. “As you know the competition for all of this infrastructure money is going on and it takes a lot of work and effort to prove your case, that you’re the one they should be giving this grant money to,” he added.

“We’re trying, but it ain’t over yet,” the mayor said. For now, the application was completed and submitted, with at least 24 letters of support included. Village officials are waiting to hear back from the Congressman, hoping for some good news.