Old Field Takes Step Toward Fixing Roads

The Village of Old Field passed a resolution Tuesday night to authorize the borrowing of funds to pay for the first step toward repaving roads in the village.

The resolution permits the village to borrow $100,000 for engineering and survey work that will enable a bid package to be produced for the project, according to trustee Ted Rosenberg, who is also Old Field’s streets and roads commissioner.

The resolution was passed with one dissenting vote from the village’s mayor, Michael Levine. Since the borrowed money would be wasted if the subsequent road work is not carried out, Levine said he would be more comfortable moving forward once more was heard from residents concerning the proposed project.

Others on the board said the survey work was necessary to provide residents with the facts about what the road work would cost.

The project could result in a tax increase of roughly $800 per household, board members said, although that figure is only an estimate at this point. The project would involve drainage work and the repaving of Old Field’s roads where necessary. Several board members and residents in attendance noted the shoddy condition of the village’s roads, saying that the work has been talked about for years.

“Someone somewhere along the way has to have the courage to do what needs to be done,” trustee Stephen Shybunko said. “It’s very easy for a board to say, ‘Not now, not on my watch, I don’t want to raise taxes,’” he said, adding that interest rates are at historic lows and doing the work now will yield savings on repair costs in the long run.

The resolution followed the board’s projection that Old Field’s budget will be maintained for the next fiscal year, as well as the announcement that a $60,000 grant has been awarded to the village for habitat enhancement along Old Field Road.

The grant money would be used for the design and planning of a storm water control system along a 0.6-mile stretch of the road that borders Conscience Bay. The area has suffered erosion from runoff, and the drainage issue there could be addressed in conjunction with the larger roads project being undertaken by the village.

The grant is being awarded by the Long Island Sound Futures Fund, a grant program of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation that “provides funding on a competitive basis to projects that sustain, restore, and enhance our nation's fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats,” according to the foundation’s Web site.

Trustee Gail Habicht will attend an award ceremony for the grant on Friday, Nov. 12.