Oakdale residents to vote on massive sewer expansion project next week

Residents of an Oakdale neighborhood along the Connetquot River will cast ballots next week to decide the fate of an approximately $44 million sewer expansion project intended to reduce contamination of the waterway.

If approved, the Oakdale Sewer Expansion Project would allow about 420 homes to connect to Suffolk County’s Bergen Point Wastewater Treatment Plant in West Babylon, eliminating outdated cesspools currently in use, officials said.

Voting takes place Monday, Dec. 8, from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Idle Hour Elementary School. Any registered voter living in the boundary of the proposed extension is eligible to vote, according to the Suffolk County Board of Elections.

The project’s estimated completion date is 2029, according the proposition. At that point, an average one- or two-family home would be charged about $702 per year to be connected to the system.

The project is part of the county’s ongoing effort to replace outdated cesspools that allow nitrogen pollution in groundwater and surface water, environmentalists say. In January, the Federal Emergency Management Agency approved a $39.58 million hazard mitigation grant to defray most of the project, known as Phase 1A.

Suffolk County lawmakers in August approved the referendum vote for the proposed project in which $42.7 million has already been earmarked through federal and state grants. The remaining total is funded through a $1.13 million bond, which would fall on ratepayers to cover.

The project topped a priority list recently completed by a Suffolk advisory group mapping out how to spend wastewater infrastructure funds generated through a new 1/8th of a percent sales tax.

Albert Kulfan, 74, who has lived in the hamlet on Edgewater Road since 1991, said in an interview he plans to vote for the sewer extension but still had some reservations. He said his biggest concern is that the project doesn’t also address flooding issues that plague the area. He said if the roads are torn up to add the sewer infrastructure, they should be raised at the same time.

"If you’re going to tear it all apart and put it back together, and spend millions of dollars regardless, why not do it correctly the first time?" he said.

David Chan, 65, who lives in the portion of Oakdale slated for second phase known as Phase 1B, said sewers "would be great for the community" but acknowledged residents still had unanswered questions. Chan served as president of the Oakdale Civic Association before stepping down earlier this year to mount an unsuccessful bid for a council seat in the Town of Islip.

"I think a lot of people are concerned about property damage" during construction, he said. "And then what happens? Who’s responsible for that?"

The district's county lawmaker, Legis. Anthony Piccirillo (R-Holtsville), who has been leading community outreach and has supported the initiative, said in an October interview "everything’s covered" for homeowners, including a ripped up lawn or driveway.

Robyn Silvestri, executive director of the nonprofit Save the Great South Bay, said the sewer extension is "the first step" to address longstanding water quality problems. In Oakdale, the "water table is so high" that some residents cannot simultaneously flush a toilet and run sink water, she said.

"This all backs up right into that Connetquot River watershed area and right out in the bay," she said. "The water in the Connetquot River is sometimes bright green."

Correction: The annual cost to connect to the proposed Oakdale sewer system is projected to be $702 by 2029. An earlier version of this story referenced an outdated projection.

By Joe Werkmeister

joe.werkmeister@newsday.com

Joe Werkmeister joined Newsday in 2022 and covers Suffolk County government and politics. He is a graduate of St. Bonaventure University and previously worked as the editor of two North Fork community newspapers.

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