Port Jefferson awards $256,725 contract to remove Mil Creek culvert sediment; project partly funded by county grant

The Port Jefferson Board approved a $256,725 contract with Earth Repair LLC on July 30 to remove sediment from a stormwater culvert in Mil Creek, a step trustees described as part of a multi-phase remediation to reduce flooding and restore creek function.

Mayor and trustees explained the award follows a bid analysis and recommendation by village engineers (Hayduck Engineering LLC). The project is part of a larger effort funded in part by a $500,000 Suffolk County jump‑start grant. Trustees said phase one includes mechanical removal of culvert sediment and that phase two will require securing DEC permits and additional procurement to remove invasive phragmites and remaining sediment; the village’s Mil Creek steward, Robert Laravey, has a DEC permit allowing limited hand removal but the scale of infestation requires mechanical removal.

Trustees and staff said the timing dovetails with an ongoing downtown flood‑reduction study by village engineers (MLAN Associates): clearing the culvert now will allow engineers to model flows more accurately and inform longer‑term maintenance and mitigation planning. The board authorized the contract and discussed follow‑on RFP work for DEC permitting and mechanical phragmites removal.

The board did not note local matching costs beyond the grant allocation; trustees said procurement details for the second phase will follow and that the village intends to maintain the creek on an ongoing basis to prevent re‑growth and future flooding problems.