Munsey gets stay on M-LWD tower work

Bill San Antonio

A state Appellate Court judge has issued an emergency order barring construction on a project to replace an 85-year-old water tower at the Manhasset-Lakeville Water District’s site in the Village of Munsey Park. 

Judge Peter B. Skelos in a three-page ruling on Wednesday also set an Aug. 28 hearing between the water district and village to determine whether work on a new 750,000-gallon water tower at the site should take place.

The ruling comes on the heels of an Aug. 11 order by Judge R. Bruce Cozzens in Nassau County Supreme Court lifting a temporary restraining order against construction to the tower. 

“We respectfully disagree with the low court’s decision and we’re confident that we’ll be successful at the appellate division,” said Bob Morici, counsel to the Village of Munsey Park.

In filing its appeal to the higher court, the village also enlisted additional counsel, Greenberg Traurig.

The water district has proposed to replace the current 500,000 gallon-capacity tower along Eakins Road in Munsey Park with one of the same 165-foot height that holds 750,000 gallons. Residents and village officials at public hearings have requested Manhasset-Lakeville look into a ground-level tank that they said would be safer and more aesthetically pleasing. 

The current tower is one of the district’s two elevated water storage tanks that distributes water across the 10.2 square miles in Manhasset and parts of Great Neck and New Hyde Park served by the Manhasset-Lakeville Water District.

The village filed for a temporary restraining order against the water district in late July, citing Manhasset-Lakeville officials had not adequately sought alternatives for the project.

But Chris Prior, counsel to the Manhasset-Lakeville Water District, said other options have been considered. 

“The district has pursued a process of inclusion and acted as a respectful neighbor to the officials and residents of Munsey Park,” Prior said. “They were given an ample opportunity to be heard and they used it, and we now expect the court will confirm that the water district has acted within the law and will allow it to replace this water tank for residents both inside and outside the Village of Munsey Park.”

Manhasset-Lakeville officials have said that the current water tower does not comply with building and safety codes, while the proposed tower would meet regulations and be able to withstand extreme weather conditions in the future.

The water tower was last rehabilitated in 1998, and the water district has since made regular repairs to curtail its corrosion and deterioration. 

But based on recent analysis and testing conducted by H2M Architects + Engineers, officials have said the tower would have to undergo major rehabilitation in the next few years or be replaced completely.

The proposed tower would cost $3.2 million that the district intends to pay for using money in its capital fund. 

Officials have said a new tower would increase the water district’s annual operating costs by approximately $90,000.

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