Legal representatives for the Manhasset-Lakeville Water District filed paperwork on Thursday, Aug. 28 to block a request by the Village of Munsey Park to the state Appellate Court to construct a new water tower at the water district’s site on Eakins Road.
The meeting resulted from a three-page ruling by Judge Peter B. Skelos in late August granting the village a temporary stay while the Appellate Court reviews Munsey Park’s request for an injunction against work to the site.
Paul Pepper, an attorney with Morici & Morici, LLP which represents the village, said Munsey Park’s legal team expects a decision on the appeal within the next 30 days.
Efforts to reach Chris Prior, who serves as counsel to the water district with the firm Ackerman Levine Cullen Brickman & Limmer, LLP, were unavailing.
The village’s appeal came 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.
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.
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.
