Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone and other officials will hold a town hall meeting in Flanders Monday night to provide residents with information about the county’s proposed “Reclaim Our Water: Septic Improvement Program.”
This first-of-its-kind water quality improvement program in Suffolk County would provide eligible homeowners grant funding and low-interest financing through CDCLI Funding Corp. to help pay for advanced wastewater treatment systems.
The event tonight will be held at the David W. Crohan Community Center, 655 Flanders Road beginning at 7 p.m. Subsequent town halls will be held in Port Jefferson, Huntington and Centereach.
Additional town hall meetings will be announced in the weeks ahead.
Under County Executive Steve Bellone’s proposed program, Suffolk County Assessment Stabilization Reserve Fund would provide $2 million a year through 2021 for homeowner grants of up to $11,000 to help cover the cost of advanced wastewater treatment systems. The systems cost between $14,500 and $17,500. Homeowners could qualify to finance the remaining cost over 15 years at a fixed interest rate of 3 percent.
An estimated 400 homeowners would be selected to receive the funding under the first two years of the program, according to the county executive’s office.
If approved by the Suffolk County Legislature, the program would be scheduled to launch on July 1, 2017.
Bellone said the town hall meetings are intended to educate residents about how the program would work and how they can benefit from its financial incentives.
“I encourage all residents to attend an event in their own community to learn how they can help reverse decades off nitrogen pollution in their own backyards,” Bellone said.
Additional scheduled town halls are as follows:
Thursday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m.
Port Jefferson Village Center
101 E. Broadway, Port Jefferson
Monday, May 8 at 7 p.m.
Huntington Public Library (main branch)
338 Main Street, Huntington
Friday, May 12 – 7:30 PM
Middle County Library (Centereach branch)
101 Eastwood Boulevard, Centereach
The town halls will include presentations by Bellone along with officials from the Suffolk County Department of Health Services Division of Environmental Quality, among others.
