Hempstead agency mulls suing Nassau

Hempstead Housing Authority officials said they are considering suing Nassau County to recover more than $150,000 in damages to a housing authority building caused by flooding from Tropical Storm Irene.

The county has refused to address recurring flooding issues from a creek behind 260 Clinton St., housing authority officials said during Tuesday's Hempstead Village board meeting. County officials say it's a multi-jurisdictional problem.

"We are going to pursue legal action against Nassau County," housing agency commissioner Cornell Bozier said at the meeting. "We are at a loss on what to do."

Village Mayor Wayne J. Hall expressed support, though he and other officials advised Bozier to consider other options first.

The root of the problem is that the parking lot and first story of the four-floor building with 143 units are below sea level, said Stacey Stackhouse, executive director of the low-income housing authority. The building houses primarily senior citizens and disabled tenants.

Computers, telephones, furniture and cabinets in the first-floor administrative offices were ruined, Stackhouse said. Many residents' cars were also under water, she said.

"They should have done something two years ago," said Marie Taylor, 43, whose parents, Dorothy, 68, and Roosevelt Taylor, 76, lost their 1999 Astro van in the flooding. "They just put up signs in the lot that say 'park at your own risk.' "

The housing authority will consider building a higher retaining wall or installing a pumping system, despite the lack of county help, Stackhouse said.

Nassau Department of Public Works spokesman Mike Martino said although the creek is owned by the county, the drainage system behind Clinton Street is multi-jurisdictional. The villages of Hempstead and Garden City contribute to the runoff, he said.

The drain "is not physically capable of handling significant storm events, which seem to be occurring more frequently in our region," Martino said. "Despite these challenges, Nassau County continues to look for ways to alleviate this.