By GREGORY ZELLER //
With ferocious storms piling up and federal forces dragging their heels, Albany is taking innovative action to protect Long Island beaches.
Among the marching orders are a new partnership with Suffolk County to replenish lost sand along the Fire Island shoreline and “critical improvements” designed to safeguard infrastructure on – and public access to – beaches in Jones Beach Island’s Gilgo State Park, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office said this week.
All told, the state is sinking $5 million into new Long Island coastal-resilience efforts – while Hochul is leaning on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to speed up regional coastal-repair efforts.
Specifically, Albany is funneling $3 million toward Fire Island stabilization and another $2 million to the Town of Babylon for replenishment work at the town’s Overlook Beach in Cedar Beach, all coming from New York State’s $4.2 billion Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, which was approved by voters in 2022.
Hochul, who announced the funding Monday while touring Overlook Beach, said Albany is taking these actions “to ensure our communities, homes and infrastructure are resilient and will withstand the coastal storms happening now.”
“Long Island communities are all too familiar with the destruction caused by extreme weather,” the governor added. “I’m committed to continuing our close partnership with the Army Corps and local officials to protect Long Island.”
Day at the beach: Governor Hochul (blue jacket) tours the Town of Babylon’s Overlook Beach Monday.
That commitment is especially appreciated in Babylon, where the Overlook Beach pavilion and public playground have been left at the mercy of the sea by a recent barrage of coastal storms.
“The resiliency investments announced today will greatly enhance our ability to withstand the impacts of extreme weather, shoreline erosion and climate change,” noted Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schafer. “These investments are crucial in stabilizing our communities and ensuring the long-term sustainability of our coastal assets.”
On Fire Island, homeowners in the Fire Island Pines and Cherry Grove neighborhoods – where protective dunes have been washed away by years of extreme weather – watch coastal storms very closely. Repair efforts by the Army Corps of Engineers are “well underway,” according to Hochul’s office, but are being outpaced by the frequency of beach-eating storms.
As a barrier island, Fire Island is “the first line of defense for the mainland,” noted Brookhaven Town Supervisor Daniel Panico, who thanked Hochul for the new financial support but called for an end to “the seemingly endless cycle of emergency scrambling.”
Daniel Panico: Thinking long-term.
“We must address this issue as a region and … embark on a regional plan,” Panico said Monday. “The frequency and ferocity of these storms have exposed the fact that the current approach may be untenable.”
Earlier this month, Hochul announced a comprehensive coastal-resiliency effort as part of her 2024 State of the State agenda and called on the Army Corps of Engineers to expedite approval of Albany’s emergency-rehabilitation requests. The state is asking for immediate repairs in four specific coastal locales: the Fire Island Inlet to Moriches Inlet, Fire Island Inlet to Shores Westerly, areas west of Shinnecock Inlet and beachfront properties in Downtown Montauk.
According to the Army Corps of Engineers, beach-erosion control projects around the Fire Island Inlet and points west are scheduled to begin this fall – but that might not be soon enough, according to Suffolk County Executive Ed Romaine.
“Each year, we face the dire reality that we will lose more of our shoreline, creating a public-safety emergency while also affecting the billions in tourism dollars that are generated by hundreds of thousands of visitors visiting our world-famous beaches and historic villages and landmarks,” Romaine said in a statement. “Governor Hochul’s promise of aggressive action to combat this issue will no doubt assist us in preserving an entire way of life that has personified Long Island for generations.”
