Babylon Town moves ahead with pricey Oak Beach water system upgrade despite residents' objections

The Town of Babylon is moving ahead with building a new water system for more than four dozen homes in Oak Beach despite residents protesting the annual cost they will incur.

Town and county officials said the three public wells that 56 homes rely on for water need to be replaced with a new water system due to age and the threat of contamination. There have been three incidents of E. coli bacteria in the wells, according to county health officials.

"It’s amazing that it still operates," said Joe Guarino, principal environmental analyst for the town.

The rest of the 144 homes on the barrier island rely on private wells. The town owns the land in Oak Beach and residents have long-term leases.

Two new wells will be built, as well as a treatment facility and distribution system. The town last week approved bonding for $8.8 million for the project and also hired WHM Plumbing & Heating Contractors Inc., of East Setauket, for $1.95 million for the construction.

The estimated debt service on the bonding is $4.2 million, for which residents would have to pay $2,000 annually for the next 30 years, officials said. There are 22 homes nearby that could also opt into the system and pay toward the debt.

"We have the scales in front of us," Guarino said. "On the one side we see the cost burden on the residents. On the other side we have the health department telling us this needs to be done yesterday."

A $1.8 million state grant is being used toward the work, which requires a 20% town match. Officials said they are seeking additional state and federal funding to bring down the cost to residents.

The board voted 5-0 to proceed with the system at a May 20 board meeting despite residents asking the town not to.

Jason Hime, from Suffolk County’s department of health services, said at the meeting that there are a number of sanitary code violations with the current well system, including excessive levels of lead and iron in the water and that some of the pipes "have experienced significant corrosion and have failed."

"This system is extremely vulnerable to contamination events and must be replaced," Hime said.

Residents in the 56 homes have been advised since 2017 to not drink the water.

Hime said if the new system is not built the health department could enforce fines against the town that would reach "tens of millions" of dollars and the system would still have to be built.

Resident Brian Chait told the board during the meeting that the town should foot the entire bill for the project.

"We consider this to be an infrastructure responsibility of the town," he said, comparing it to road repairs.

Courtney Alexander, 55, and generations of her family have lived seasonally at their Oak Beach home since 1921 but said the burden of paying for the new system plus whatever additional fees may come could force her to leave.

"It’s an enormous amount," said Alexander who lives in Florida. "You don’t do this to people who have been paying taxes there for 100 years."

By Denise M. Bonilla

denise.bonilla@newsday.comdenisebonilla

Denise Bonilla has worked at Newsday since 2003 and covers the Town of Babylon, including the villages of Lindenhurst and Amityville.