West Shore Road to be closed on eight nights in July

West Shore Road in Mill Neck, a key North Shore access road being rebuilt after damage from superstorm Sandy, is scheduled to be closed on eight nights this month.

On Tuesday, the entire road is to be closed from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., Nassau County officials said. The southern third, from Cleft Road to the Long Island Rail Road trestle, is to be closed next Wednesday and Thursday nights, and from July 21 until 25.

The 2-mile road along Oyster Bay Harbor was undermined in several locations by high tides from Sandy and was closed after the October storm. The county undertook a $9.2-million emergency repair of the whole road and reconstruction of the central section. The road reopened in early June, though minor repairs are ongoing.

During the upcoming closures, steel sheeting will be installed to temporarily replace 450 feet of seawall on the southern portion of the road lost in the storm. County officials say the schedule of night repairs was designed to have “minimal to no impact” on weekend or rush hour traffic.

While the entire road was closed, residents of Bayville and Centre Island made a 10-minute detour through Mill Neck and Lattingtown, hindering business in Bayville and parts of Oyster Bay.

The county expects to reconstruct the southern portion beginning at the end of the year. The final phase of reconstruction on the northern section of the road will begin after the county resolves questions of land ownership.