Efforts to fix Halesite flooding renewed

Efforts to solve the chronic flooding of a section of Route 110 in Halesite are back on.

A new round of bidding on the estimated $18.9-million flood mitigation project was held recently and bids were opened on July 28, according to Eileen Peters, the state Department of Transportation's regional spokeswoman.

According to the department's website, the apparent low bidder is Hasa Construction of Farmingdale, at $17,986,270.

An earlier round of bidding, held last year, led to court proceedings after the state nullified all bids. A court ruling last month permitted a new round of bidding to get under way.

The stretch of Route 110 to be renovated -- between Prime Avenue/Madison Street and Youngs Hill Road -- closed when it flooded again yesterday in torrential rains that hit the area.

Peters said department officials are reviewing the new low bid for the project, which also will be reviewed by the state attorney general and the state comptroller's office.

"The review process usually takes about 45 days," Peters said. "We're looking for assurances that all the contractual requirements are being met."

Last year's winning bidder wound up disqualified when state officials discovered that it could not post a performance and payment bond guaranteeing its finances.

The second-lowest bidder was Anthony Labriola, owner of A.L.A.C. Contracting of West Babylon. He sued, claiming the bid process was mismanaged and that he should have been awarded the bid.

A State Supreme Court ruling in Mineola granted an injunction to prevent a new round of bidding and in January ruled that the bid process could continue.

But a "motion to reargue" filed by Labriola led Justice Stephen A. Bucaria in March to put bid proceedings on hold. Last month, Bucaria ruled that although Labriola's testimony was "compelling," he had not established that the department's decision to reject all bids was arbitrary and declined to review that decision.

Steven Cohn, Labriola's Carle Place-based attorney, said his client is going to see what happens next.

"Unfortunately, while the judge found A.L.A.C's testimony compelling, the only remedy available by law was a rebid," Cohn said.