Plandome business district could get a boost from town funds

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Plandome business district could get a boost from town funds
The Plandome Road sewer project could be funded by a state grant and more than $3 million in funds from the Town of North Hempstead as part of the American Rescue Plan Act. (Photo courtesy of Google Maps)

More than $3 million of money that could be allocated from the Town of North Hempstead should cover the remaining expenses of a project to convert private septic tanks for businesses on Plandome Road in Manhasset to a public sewer system, Manhasset Chamber of Commerce Co-President Matthew Donno told Blank Slate Media.

Concerns about the cost of maintenance for private septic tanks have been expressed by businesses along Plandome Road, with some claiming pumps have to be examined on a weekly basis. Donno said the project, which has been analyzed for more than five years, will provide economic and environmental benefits to Plandome Road’s business district. 

Businesses and restaurants along Plandome Road can pay as much as $50,000 to $70,000 annually to pump their septic tanks. Some have also said they pay more than $500,000 a year to maintain their systems.

The system that Plandome business owners will be converting to will be a pump system thathe said will connect to each building and essentially pump the water down the line to the Great Neck Water Pollution Control District, where it will be treated.

The other benefit to the project, he said, will be that the Plandome business district will remain a business district. When new sewer systems are incorporated that have no capacity limits, he said, high-rise structures and other large-scale buildings could potentially overtake the street.

“The big fear when you put sewers in is all of a sudden you’re now going to have multiple-story buildings and that’s not going to be allowed or supported from this pump system,” Donno said. 

Donno said the Great Neck Water Pollution Control District will be doing a design study on what exactly needs to be done to complete the project.

The Water Pollution Control District’s study along with the physical application of pipes and hookups into businesses was once estimated to cost upwards of $12 million. Now, Donno said, the project should be fully funded by the proposed funds from the town and a $5 million state grant secured by state Assemblywoman Gina Sillitti (D-Port Washington) earlier this year.

The money was allocated under the Department of Environmental Conservation portion of the state’s budget. The town’s funds are a result of the American Rescue Plan Act and have become a point of contention among Democrats on the town board.

Councilwoman Veronica Lurvey declared “North Hempstead is not a dictatorship” after Supervisor Jennifer DeSena announced plans at a press conference to allocate $9 million in federal funds to five local projects, including the Plandome Road sewer project.

“These decisions must be decided by board resolution, and all seven of us have one equal vote,” Lurvey said in a statement to Blank Slate Media. “It is disappointing that Supervisor DeSena called a secret press conference announcing her wish list instead of communicating with her colleagues to ensure she would have the necessary support.”

Lurvey said she filed a resolution Oct. 25 on the allocation of funds provided by the American Rescue Plan Act for consideration at a Nov. 17 board meeting.

DeSena, a registered Democrat who ran as a Republican in 2021, made the announcement on Westbury Avenue in Carle Place alongside Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman and County Legislator Laura Schaefer (R-Westbury).

As chief executive of the town, DeSena was responsible for submitting her proposed plans to the Treasury Department to receive the federal funding, Brian Devine, her spokesman said. 

However, the seven-member town board, where Democrats hold a 4-3 majority, must pass a resolution authorizing the use of the funds.

Lurvey said there was no discussion with her or any member of the Democratic majority prior to DeSena submitting the town’s application to the Treasury Department or ahead of the Nov. 2 deadline for it to appear on the agenda for the Nov. 17 meeting.

“On Oct. 25 I put a resolution regarding the use of the ARPA funds on the agenda for the Nov. 17 meeting and then sometime later she held a press conference saying she put something on the agenda,” Lurvey said. “She never talked to me about it and we didn’t have any formal discussions regarding the use of these funds.”

Devine said the town was awarded the first half of the money upfront and the second half was only awarded this past summer once the town sent the application to the Treasury Department that identified the projects to spend the funds on.

Donno said he would be “shocked” if the town did not allocate the funds to help complete the project, touting the support board members have shown for the project in the current and prior administrations.

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