Rising Costs Swamp Horton Avenue Flooding Fix

New projections that a much-needed fix to the Horton Avenue flood zone will cost over $2 million more than previously believed has brought the remediation project to a halt, though the homes that were once swamped and boarded have already been destroyed.

Lots remain leveled where over a half dozen homes once stood. The homeowners, displaced by the 2010 floods, have been bought out and relocated, and while Riverhead Town had $600,000 budgeted to creating a man-made wetland to replace the homes, that number has since grown to $3 million. Until further notice, the vacant lots will remain unfixed.

Riverhead Town officials – led by Riverhead Police Chief David Hegermiller, also the town's FEMA coordinator – worked with members of county, state and federal government following the disastrous floods which left several families homeless. A $2.6 million FEMA grant was secured – a heavy lift since, compared to other natural disasters, relatively few individuals were affected

"The bottom line is that the price of phase two increased, and that made (the grant) not completely reimbursable," said Hegermiller. "At this point in time, it's on hold."

Assistant Town Engineer Drew Dillingham said the price of phase two jumped due to an oversight of the watershed that feeds into the low-lying area. While the initial grant application calculated a 700-acre area funneling down into Horton Avenue, Dillingham said after taking the project over – after the FEMA application had been submitted – he stumbled upon a report done in 1979. Instead of 700 acres feeding into Horton Avenue, Dillingham said, the real number is closer to 1,200 acres.

"We have to clear 3,000 feet of wooded area where water flows down south from Reeves Avenue, and dig it out to a certain depth and re-fill back with sand," he said. "What really killed it wasn't the materials, but the extra manpower required to widen the constructed wetlands and extra swales. That shot it through the roof."

Dillingham estimated that of the new $3 million price tag, about $2.4 million would be spent on labor. And though the town's highway department could possibly do some of the work, the final price tag would have to be arrived as though the government is paying for all of it.

Dillingham added that the town is exploring whether or not it can create a recharge basin at the site of a dried up pond near the traffic circle, a more affordable option. 

While the wetlands project remains on hold, officials noted that their first priority in the project – getting affected individuals out of their homes, and into safer locations – was a success. A press conference was held in October of last year to mark the start of the homes' demolition, a sign they said that illustrated different levels of government working together to make locals safer. 

"The bottom line for us is that we got people out of their houses, and if a flood like this is to occur again, nobody is impacted," said Town Supervisor Sean Walter.

Linda Hobson, one of the displaced Horton Avenue residents who worked with elected officials to bring in the federal funding, said that it was a "great sense of accomplishment that we were able to get assistance to move homeowners to safer homes."

"The most important thing is that it was cleaned up," Hegermiller said. "It's cleaner than it was. And hopefully we can get the funding to complete it."

Neighbors hope the same. Standing across from the cleared land last week, 61-year-old Clarence Braunskilo, who has lived on Horton Avenue for the past seven years after he "caught a deal," said that "they need to clean it up. If people see that, they'll start dumping over there. If it's clean, they won't do that."

Debbie McCabe agreed: "The dog can actually run now. I hope they clean it up more though."