Town of Huntington, Village of Asharoken To Share Seawall Consulting Cost
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Years of erosion and rust have caused serious damage to the Asharoken seawall at the north end of Asharoken Avenue. Long Islander News Photo/Connor Beach
By Connor Beach
cbeach@longIslandergroup.com
The Village of Asharoken and the Town of Huntington have entered into an inter-municipal cost sharing agreement for the repairs needed on the Asharoken seawall at the far end of Asharoken Avenue.
The town board passed the resolution, sponsored by Supervisor Frank Petrone, unanimously at its Oct. 17 meeting.
“The town and the village are working together to try to solve the seawall problem,” Asharoken Mayor Dr. Gregory Letica said.
The seawall was first constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1997, and was estimated to provide protection from flooding and erosion along Asharoken Avenue for 15 years.
The town resolution comes after Letica and the rest of the Asharoken Village Board of Trustees voted to hire the Westhampton Beach-based engineering and consulting company First Coastal Consulting for professional consulting services on the seawall repair.
“We’ve hired the engineering firm First Coastal to give us engineering advice, and the town and the village are going to split the cost,” Letica said.
The cost sharing agreement only covers the cost of the consulting services from First Coastal as they assist the village in finding the best plan for the implementation of the reconstruction of the seawall.
The contract between First Coastal and the village is set to last for one year with a cost not to exceed $5,000 per quarter. The town board resolution states that Huntington has agreed to share with the village no more than a $10,000 cost over the one-year period, or half of the estimated $20,000 maximum cost for First Coastal’s services.
This newest step on the long road to repair comes after village, town, state and federal officials met at the seawall on Aug. 25 to discuss short- and long-term solutions to the problem.
Letica said the reconstruction of the seawall and the protection of Asharoken Avenue is a partnership between the town and the village because it will benefit residents of both entities.
“I think it’s a great thing that the village and the town are working together on this project because it’s going to benefit the residents of Asharoken as well as residents of Huntington who live up on Eaton’s Neck,” Letica said.
