Molinaro visits Roxbury, discusses water system funding

May 13—Rep. Marc Molinaro, R-NY19, met with Roxbury town officials Monday, May 13, to discuss water system upgrades.

Molinaro was able to secure $1.25 million for the town through the bipartisan Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations bills for water system improvements. According to Town Supervisor Allen Hinkley, the town oversees three water systems — Roxbury, Grand Gorge and the Roxbury Run Village Association. The money will be used to improve water infrastructure in the hamlet of Roxbury.

Molinaro asked several questions and talked about his experiences as Tivoli mayor and Dutchess County Executive. He asked how old the oldest pipes in the system were. In Roxbury, the oldest pipe found was 125 years old made of cast iron, Hinkley answered. Molinaro said Tivoli's was 1938, however, they found old cypress wood that was used previously. In Grand Gorge, the pipes date back to the 1940s and '50s and are made of asbestos cement. Hinkley showed Molinaro maps of the Roxbury and Grand Gorge water districts and he and Chris Mattice, operations manager, talked about recent projects and future projects.

The town has upgraded the water system in Roxbury, but has two more spots that need work, Hinkley said. One spot is under state Route 30 as it connects to a fire hydrant near the village square and the second is to install a connecting line, so the water line doesn't dead end and instead creates a loop. This will allow the town to bypass Main Street if part of the line needs repair.

Roxbury had a well failure and had to drill a new well, Hinkley said. The water treatment plant treats water from wells one and three while well two is in the process of being connected to the plant. Since Grand Gorge's water has sulfur in it, the town ran pipes along the old rail bed the seven miles from Roxbury to Grand Gorge.

"It's a huge improvement for us," Lisa Ciaravino, a town board member who lives in Grand Gorge, said.

Molinaro said as the federal government spends upwards of $1.5 trillion per year, he was happy to be able to secure $27.6 million for his district. Roxbury and other municipalities submitted competitive grant applications to try to secure some of that money.

"It's really hard for small communities," Molinaro said. "And I only represent small communities, other than Binghamton and Ithaca. Being able to move capital projects become complicated. Congress has Congressional threshold directive dollars that allow a request. We made a focus on emergency response, infrastructure and to the degree that we could touch mental health and housing. Infrastructure is a big priority."

In addition to Roxbury, Molinaro secured $4.2 million for the town of Oneonta to install 7,000 linear feet of sewer and water lines and associated laterals, meters and hookups, a media release said. The city of Norwich will receive $1.25 million for sewer repairs.

Vicky Klukkert, staff writer, can be reached at vklukkert@thedailystar.com or 607-441-7221.