$10.85M Will Jumpstart Mamaroneck, Sheldrake River Flood Mitigation

MAMARONECK, NY — State and local officials aren't waiting for the feds to get started on critical flood mitigation projects.

At an announcement in Columbus Park on Friday, State Senator Shelley B. Mayer and Assemblyman Steve Otis said that the recently approved state budget included an additional $10.85 million for the Mamaroneck-Sheldrake Army Corp of Engineers flood mitigation project.

"This funding, on top of last year’s funding of $17.5 million, will allow this project to move ahead after many delays, and at the same time, identify other sources of funding for other projects that will address persistent flooding in the community," Mayer said. "I thank my colleague Assemblyman Otis for his partnership, as well as Governor Hochul, Senators Schumer and Gillibrand, County Executive Latimer, Village of Mamaroneck Mayor Torres, and Mamaroneck trustees for their continued advocacy and being champions of this cause.”

Mayer and Otis also announced a new state and county initiative to start flood mitigation projects before the Army Corps work begins. They were joined by NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Interim Commissioner Sean Mahar to speak where the Sheldrake and Mamaroneck rivers meet.

"Under the leadership of Governor Kathy Hochul, New York State is committed to working with our local, State, and federal partners to address the impacts of climate change and the increased risks of flooding due to the severe storms and extreme weather that have become all too commonplace in communities like Mamaroneck," Mahar said. "I applaud Senator Mayer and Assemblymember Otis for their work with the Governor to secure this additional funding in the budget for a total State investment of more than $27 million. DEC looks forward to continuing to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to implement projects that improve resilience, protect New Yorkers, and safeguard vital community infrastructure from future flooding."

In April, USACE officials visited Mamaroneck and determined that additional funding commitments for the project would be needed before moving forward with the $162 million plan to construct flood mitigation improvements that address flood vulnerabilities in the village. Those commitments will be necessary for the signing of two required documents: the Memorandum of Agreement and the Public Participation Agreement, by the USACE, NYS, and Westchester County.

"Our goal is to advance Mamaroneck projects as quickly as possible," Otis said. "Every storm brings new risk, and most storms bring additional loss. Today we announce two important steps: additional state funding towards the Army Corp plan and an important new path for advancing projects with state, county, and local funds to begin work as soon as we can. Senator Mayer and I have worked closely with Governor Hochul and her team on both efforts."

In 2023, Mayer and Otis succeeded in having the initial state share, $17.5 million, included in the 2023-24 state budget. When news of the new cost recalculation arrived on March 7, Senate and Assembly one-house budget proposals had already been submitted. Mayer and Otis worked closely with leadership in both houses of the legislature, Senate Finance and Assembly Ways and Means Committee staff, the NYS Division of the Budget, and the DEC to win inclusion of this funding in the adopted state budget.

In addition, Otis, Mayer and the DEC have initiated a new model to advance Mamaroneck flood mitigation projects ahead of the Army Corp’s timetable through the use of non-federal funding to begin Mamaroneck projects. Over the past two months, regular meetings involving state agencies, Westchester County, the USACE and village officials took place that have shown great promise.

"I visited Mamaroneck the day after Hurricane Ida and stood with the community devastated by yet another deadly storm, and promised them I would not stop fighting to deliver them the flood protections they deserved," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said. "After years of bureaucratic delays, I urged the Army Corps of Engineers to come to the table and was able to secure the tens of millions in federal funding needed to move this project forward. Now, thanks to the tenacity of my partners in this fight, State Senator Shelley Mayer and Assemblyman Otis, in conjunction with Westchester County, the final piece of the puzzle is in place to ensure that this vital project can move forward without delay. Now we are one step closer to providing relief and hope to our long-plagued residents for the flood protections they deserve."