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Friday, August 19, 2016
Vol. 76, No. 32
INDIA DAY PARADE
Circuit improvement project underway in Plainview BY GARY SIMEONE
Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos was an honored guest at the India Day Parade in Hicksville, an annual celebration of the arts and culture of India, as well as the vast contributions Indian-Americans have made to our community. In addition to being a celebration of India’s independence, the event featured live music, food, shopping, and fun for the entire family. Pictured are Comptroller Maragos and members of the Begampura Cultural Society of New York, Inc.
For the next three months, PSEG Long Island, will be working on a circuit reliability project in the Plainview area. The purpose of the project is to improve the reliability of the electric grid for thousands of its customers. Crews have begun working on the circuit improvement project earlier this month. The project includes a number of things such as replacing existing wire with more weather-resistant wire, installing new poles installing and replacing switching equipment to help reduce the number of customers affected by an outage. “Our customers in Plainview deserve more resilient service and equipment, able to withstand even the most severe weather,” said John O’Connell, PSEG Long Island vice president of transmission and distribution operations. “By expanding Oyster Bay projects to include Plainview, PSEG Long Island is working to ensure that more customers have the best-in-class service they deserve.”
The project route will cover approximately one mile along an electrical grid near Manetto Hill Road. The route includes a stretch between Willben Lane and Old Country Road and on Washington Avenue between Manetto Hill Road and Sherwood Drive. Work on the project will take place Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. until early November. As a result of the project, PSEG Long Island estimates that there will be “minor traffic interruptions” in the area. The project is funded through the FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance Program. It is part of a federally funded, three-year reliability and resiliency project to further strengthen the electric grid across Long Island and in the Rockaways. “We are continuing to proactively identify areas where we can upgrade and enhance the electric system and equipment,” said O’Connell. “Adding additional circuits to ongoing FEMA reliability work helps ensure that customers are receiving safe and reliable service every day.”
Hicksville Water District set to begin water main improvements The Hicksville Water District began work this week to begin to replace approximately four miles of water mains, fire hydrants and valves in the southeastern section of Hicksville. The infrastructure improvements were previously announced during a meeting held at the Hicksville Community Center in May, in addition to hand-delivering a letter to residents who will be immediately affected during Phase 1. The District says the project will save on costly and disruptive repairs, and will be performed in four separate phases
over the next four years. The current cast iron water mains, installed in the late 1940’s and 1950’s after WWII, will be replaced with stateof-the-art, cement-lined, ductile iron. Comprehensive studies of the current water mains infrastructural integrity and conditions were completed by the experts at H2M Architects & Engineers. “The current cast-iron water mains have experienced extensive breaks over the past decade, particularly in this southeastern section of the District, attributed to settlement trenches,”
said Chairman Nicholas J. Brigandi. “It would be more costly to continue to make repairs rather than replacing the infrastructure, which has very unmistakably reached the end of its lifecycle after decades of service.” Replacing the existing water main puts the District on a fiscally responsible path for supplying high-quality water to its residents for the next several decades. “We will remain dedicated to providing a continuous line of communication with the community and will implement
real-time updates through our Facebook page, in addition to assigning a point person to be reachable for comments or questions,” added Brigandi. “We want to make every effort possible to notify customers with at least 24 hours in advance if there will be any interruption of traffic patterns, service or driveway access.” For more information on the Hicksville Water District, please visit www. hicksvillewater.org or add the District on Facebook at facebook.com/HicksvilleWaterDistrict.
Awarded Distinguished Service Award PAGE 13 Adopt-a-Battalion supports troops PAGE 6