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Village details $6.6 million flood mitigation grant and lays out multi-year project plan
Summary
Village officials described a multi-pronged flood mitigation strategy and accepted a $6.6 million New York State Green Resiliency Grant (GRG) framework, committing a $733,333 local match and moving to serve as lead SEQRA agency while pursuing related projects and federal/state partnerships.
Dennis, the village staff lead on flood mitigation, told the Board of Trustees on June 23 that the village has been compiling prior studies and creating an inventory of recommended projects to align with funding opportunities.
"We're going to cross reference by study, report, page number, what those projects are," Dennis said, describing a plan to scope projects, prioritize them and prepare cost estimates to support grant applications. He told the board the community is vulnerable to stormwater, riverine and coastal flooding and that the strategy focuses on projects that will not shift flood risk to other neighborhoods.
Dennis and engineering staff discussed a $6.6 million award from the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation under the Green Resiliency Grant (GRG) program to support flood-bench construction, floodplain restoration and related channel work around the Ward Avenue bridge and the confluence at Columbus Park. The village reported a total estimated project cost of roughly $9.6 million for the scope discussed in 2024, with a local-match requirement; staff said the local match commitment being approved by the board was $733,333 and that additional grant applications were pending to cover remaining gaps.
The engineering counterpart described a planning and design schedule that assumes an agreement and funding timeline: an anticipated five-year period of performance for the grant, with planning and engineering work beginning after agreement execution and an illustrative schedule that could place design and bidding in late 2026 and construction in spring–summer 2027 for phase 1.
Officials reviewed related grant activity: several FEMA public-assistance project worksheets remain open, some FEMA reimbursements are pending, and the village has applications with other state programs. Dennis said the village is also coordinating with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on a larger confluence-area project and has met with Corps and congressional staff to advance agreements and planning.
Trustees approved a package of GRG-related resolutions that included committing the local match, authorizing the village manager to execute the GRG agreement and related documents, and declaring the village lead agency for SEQRA review of the GRG-funded projects. Dennis said staff will continue to pursue county, state and federal funding and will refine cost estimates and project sequencing before moving to construction.
The meeting record shows the board also discussed a number of related projects that may be pursued in parallel, including small drainage studies (Jeffers Ave and Wood St.) and potential property buyouts and elevations funded by other state and federal programs.
