Implementing the Flood Plan

by Kathy Savolt -

At the June 23, 2025 Board of Trustees (BOT) meeting, Assistant Village Manager Dennis Delborgo unveiled the beginnings of a comprehensive program for flood mitigation.  See HERE. This program (see HERE) will assist Village officials set priorities, budget funds and identify and qualify for grant monies.

Since the meeting, Village Manager Kathleen Gill, Mayor Sharon Torres and Delborgo have been explaining more about the program, including activities already underway.  At a recent meeting of the Washingtonville Neighborhood Association (WNA), Delborgo presented the program while emphasizing numerous aspects that are happening now.  Additionally, Mayor Torres posted the information on social media, apparently in an effort to combat several posts that the Village was “doing nothing” about flooding.

This program is made up of at least 100 separate projects involving the Mamaroneck and Sheldrake Rivers, Beaver Swamp Brook and the coastline.  All actions that mitigate flooding are included – infrastructure, green solutions, grant finding and funding, and ongoing river maintenance.  Here are some projects now underway:

Four Bridges

Any work on the Mamaroneck River has to start downstream and the first four bridges are Tompkins Avenue, Anita Lane, Halstead Avenue and the Metro-North Overpass.

All appeals for funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to repair the Tompkins Avenue Bridge damaged during Hurricane Ida have been denied.  The bridge has been closed since Ida and the current plan is to fast-track the replacement.  A grant application has been submitted for the bridge’s removal and while that phase is underway, funds will be sought for a replacement with a wider and elevated span.

Both the Anita Lane and Halstead Avenue bridges are owned by Westchester County.  Both bridges will be replaced, and the County has approved issuing bonds to begin the projects.

The Metro-North Overpass is trickier and will require Metro-North involvement.  Everyone agreed this will take time.

Ward Avenue Bridge

Replacement of the Ward Avenue Bridge was always part of the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE/ACE) project and partial funding for it was approved by Congress.  Things stalled and the cost increased and additional funding for the entire project was sought.

However, design work for the bridge removal has continued, as have the regular meetings between all the involved agencies – ACE, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Westchester County and the Village.  Mayor Torres reports that “from the Village to the Governor’s Office over 20 people have been involved in this coordination and collaboration.”  Since the ACE project requires local matching funds, both the State and the County had approved their contributions based on the original cost. 

Currently, the Village, County and ACE are reviewing a draft Memorandum of Understanding that, when executed, will allow the County and Village to move forward with the removal of the bridge using the County’s share of the match.  Gill expects the agreement to be finalized in September.

New York State Green Resiliency Grant (2024)

In October 2024, the Village was awarded $6.6 million to increase our resilience to flooding.  The Village is currently working on the paperwork and will use these funds for flood benching at the Ward Avenue Bridge and confluence of the two rivers in Columbus Park.  See article HERE.

The Village recently submitted a grant application to cover the matching funds for this grant as well as the removal of the Center Avenue bridge.

An application for the 2025 grants has been submitted seeking just under $10 million.  This project includes channel alignment and the confluence and removal of the Center Avenue pedestrian bridge.

More Grant Applications

Regardless of source, grant funding usually takes about two years from application to project start – and that’s if the Village gets the grant.  Several grant applications are currently in process which will include river gauges, cameras, removal of the Tompkins Ave bridge and removal of the footbridge behind Continental View.

Gill pointed out several times that projects already designed have a greater chance of receiving funding.  Mamaroneck is somewhat behind other communities because of the ACE projects.  The Village was not allowed to begin any other flood mitigation work that would impact that project as designed but now has secured the ability to augment that project with ACE approval.

The Dam

Although the ownership and responsibility might still be in question (see HERE), the Village continues to participate in discussions on what to do with the dam.  The Village has also funded studies regarding the removal of the dam while acknowledging lack of clarity about the Village’s responsibility.  See HERE. Currently, the fate of the dam is up in the air.

Regular Maintenance

Catch basin cleaning and debris removal from the rivers is ongoing and has been incorporated into routine work.

The WNA meeting also included other topics and was attended by Trustee Maria DeRose, Police Chief PJ Trujillo, Fire Chief and Acting Code Enforcement Officer Tommy Siemsen and Village Engineer Gino Frabasile.  The Mamaroneck Observer thanks the leadership of the WNA for inviting us to cover this important meeting.