Amityville borrows $800G ahead of FEMA funding for Sandy cleanup

Amityville trustees on Monday night voted to borrow $800,000 in anticipation of FEMA reimbursement for superstorm Sandy-related cleanup expenses.

Mayor Peter Imbert said Tuesday that the notes would be short-term and that interest rates had not yet been set.

He told a resident at Monday night’s meeting that the move was unrelated to the $1.45 million in bond- and tax-anticipation notes due in late May.

Trustees also passed a law permitting residents to raise their houses as much as 3 feet above the flood line, even if it means exceeding building height restrictions.

The law would apply only to the primary structure on a piece of property and would sunset in 2015.

Resident Stephanie Andrews criticized the sunset provision, saying it could drive away potential homebuyers and put at a disadvantage current homeowners without funds to make repairs in the next two years.

Trustees said they would re-evaluate the law then.