Cornwall Supervisor Josh Wojehowski has announced that the Hasbrouck Area Drainage Project is moving forward with a $5.65 million contract for construction being awarded to Argenio Brothers, Inc.

The Town Board voted 4-0 on October 29 to advance the project to the construction stage which, the supervisor said, “is expected to begin before the year is out”.

“This project will address flooding and drainage issues in an area of the town that has been hard hit for decades and will also play a role in reducing flooding in the Main Street business district,” he added.

Significant federal funding will help offset the overall cost to taxpayers with $1.65 million obtained by Congress Member Pat Ryan, $310k from a FEMA Hazard Mitigation Planning Grant and additional dollars from FEMA public assistance tied to the July 9, 2023 federal disaster.

“This drainage project has been decades in the making. Thanks to the persistence of residents living in the impacted areas, along with federal funding to help offset the costs, the Town Board was able to advance this project to the construction stage,” Wojehowski said. “With hyper-localized severe rain events becoming commonplace, it’s important for us to invest in upgrading drainage infrastructure throughout the community to increase resilience against flooding.”

Ryan said he’s proud to have been able to help.

“Once-in-a-lifetime weather catastrophes like the historic flooding that devastated Cornwall last year are seemingly now annual events – and we have to act immediately,” he said. “I’m proud to have helped secure the federal funding that will aid Cornwall in shoring up the community’s infrastructure, improving its resilience against flooding for generations to come, and creating good-paying construction jobs along the way.”