Community Watchdog: Mystery over eroding bulkhead

The bulkhead where a canal ends at Fire Island Avenue has fallen apart and needs to be rebuilt. It had been deteriorating and finally fell apart after the March nor'easter. Village of Babylon officials say the village is responsible for maintaining up to 8 feet from the curb. The bulkhead is 10 feet from the curb, so the village won't replace the bulkhead. Now the water from the canal is beginning to erode the land to the road and I'm afraid it's going undermine Fire Island Avenue and the foundation of my house. I've been paying property taxes here for 22 years and I can't afford to pay for work the village should do.

- Sandi DeSimone, Babylon

Village Mayor Ralph A. Scordino describes this as "an oddity" because he's been trying to find out who owns that extra two feet of land for more than five months, since Ms. DeSimone contacted him about the bulkhead problem. Even Suffolk County couldn't help the mayor.

So we asked Bill Fonda, spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Conservation, for help. He consulted with DEC experts and told us "the staff feel that whoever owns Fire Island Avenue is responsible for the end of that bulkhead on that canal . . . because bulkheads are put in to protect the upland areas, which, in this case, would be the road."

Fire Island Avenue is a village road. But the bulkhead? "We don't know who owns it" because there's no deed, the mayor said. He'll have an engineer inspect the road to see if it's being compromised because of the bulkhead problem, he said, and the village also plans to take measures (including using 6x6 timbers) to keep the dirt from washing into the canal.

The mayor says he'll keep trying to learn who owns the bulkhead. "If we find out it's us," he said, "then we have to fix it." But, he insisted, "I can't use taxpayers' money on property we don't know that we own."

Readers, if you can help solve this mystery, please e-mail details to watchdog@newsday.com.

Stay tuned.

There's a huge dying tree in a 5-foot strip of land next to my yard owned by Suffolk County. This tree loses limbs every time it's windy. It leans over my children's playhouse and the last limb that came down fell on it. I've made a lot of phone calls and was basically told there was nothing they could do. I have four children in grammar school and they're in the backyard every day, and I'm worried someone will be seriously injured.

-Ray Winslow, Nesconset

An inspector from Division of Real Estate (part of the Department of Environment and Energy) was sent to check out the problem after we called the county. County spokesman Mark Smith said after the inspection, a work order was submitted to get two estimates: one for how much it will cost to remove the limbs, the second, for the whole tree. The estimates will also include a time frame when the work can be done. That should take about a week, Mr. Winslow. Then, the department has to figure out what can be done based on its budget.

"It's on our radar that it's something that needs to be done," Smith said. Stay tuned.

There is an asphalt path on Woodland Drive in East Islip that begins on the south side of John F. Kennedy Elementary School and continues to Rosemary Place. My husband and I maintain the path by mowing grass and shoveling snow, but the area needs a clear sidewalk and curb for kids walking to school. The Town of Islip will send people to take a look, but there haven't been any results. The town installed sidewalks north of the school in the spring, but not near us.

- Kerry Mazzella, East Islip

Maybe next year . . . or a few years after that, Mrs. Mazzella. Gene Murphy, commissioner of Planning and Development, said replacement of the roughly 1,000-foot asphalt path is one of the projects being considered for next year through the town's Sidewalks by Schools Program, based your recent requests.

However, requests often exceed the program's budget, so "installation may take several years," he said. This summer, four sidewalks were completed. Sidewalks on the north side of the school were installed based on a survey in 2008 that indicated 75 students walked the route daily, compared to 26 kids on the south side.

Selection of sites are based on frequency of use, traffic conditions and cost. Launched in 1986, the program's goal is to increase safety for students on well-traveled routes.

Town residents interested in the program's benefits must submit a written request to Murphy or the Islip Town Board at 655 Main St., Islip, N.Y. 11751.