Hempstead earmarks $40 million this year for road projects

Hempstead Town officials plan to invest $40 million in road projects this year to jump-start the economy and create jobs in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Town board members unanimously approved the money in April as part of a road project stimulus package.

The town approved $36 million in road funding last year, of which $20 million was left over. While most construction was halted during the pandemic shutdown, certain projects that had already started were allowed to proceed, such as on Stuyvesant Street in East Meadow, other paving projects and emergency road repairs.

Hempstead Town Supervisor Don Clavin said the town’s engineering department is looking at various projects and recommendations within the town when additional road construction resumes. Clavin said the town will use the $40 million to repave and reconstruct 100 miles of roads across the town.

“This is going to create jobs,” Clavin said. “Through this pandemic, people have lost jobs and we want to improve the quality of life for residents. Roads have been the bane of complaints for a lot of the residents.”

Some road projects planned include Hempstead Gardens in West Hempstead, Miller Place in Levittown and a paving project at Alken Avenue and Clark Street in Seaford, Clavin said.

Road work will include full grading, repaving and smoothing, Clavin said. Construction will be expanded to projects that were unable to be completed during the pandemic.

Clavin, who did not say how many jobs would be created, said the town this week is asking the state for more leniency on work permitted and further guidance on road construction through the end of this week. 

Under New York PAUSE, only essential construction is permitted during the stay-at-home order and emergency road construction, such as during a water main break. Only regional areas that meet certain health and testing criteria can expand to phase one, which allows additional nonessential construction.

“The reality is people want to get back to work and need jobs and we need that approval to go through these processes,” Clavin said. “For the people I work with, safety is paramount. It’s also about the limitations what we can do under the pandemic and with a limited workforce.”

Town board members said the new economic stimulus of $40 million will be added to the unspent funding from last year in bonds, totaling $60 million in planned road projects this year. 

The board in 2018 passed a five-year capital plan that called for $160 million in highway capital projects for streets in Lakeview, Roosevelt, Uniondale, West Hempstead, Bellerose Terrace, Elmont, Westbury, Franklin Square, South Valley Stream, Hewlett, Oceanside, Baldwin, Bellmore, Seaford, East Meadow, Levittown, Merrick, North Bellmore, North Merrick and Wantagh.

The town previously filled 70,000 potholes over 1,200 miles of roads. 

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.