A proposed project to replace an 85-year-old Manhasset-Lakeville Water District tower located within the Village of Munsey Park could take up to 18 months to complete and cost approximately $3.2 million, district officials said.
Officials said they plan to replace the tower, which holds 500,000 gallons of water, with one that holds 700,000 gallons and would be able to better serve the district’s growing demand for water.
The 165-foot-tall proposed tank is a more cost-effective option than similar styles that hold 750,000 gallons, officials said, and would be built to meet building code requirements to sustain hurricane wind and seismic load conditions.
District officials presented the plan during a meeting on Wednesday with Munsey Park, Flower Hill, Town of North Hempstead and New York state officials.
Water district Commissioner O’Brien said a public meeting will be held on April 8, but a time and location has not yet been determined.
“The whole idea is to keep everybody informed and get as much information out there as possible so the community understands the importance of this project,” O’Brien said. “The key point is that it’s not just a Munsey Park or Flower Hill project, it impacts all of Manhasset.”
The Munsey Park water tower is one of the district’s two elevated water tanks that helps distribute water across Manhasset-Lakeville’s 10.2 square miles in Manhasset and parts of Great Neck and New Hyde Park.
The tower was constructed in 1929 and was last rehabilitated in 1998. It is located at the district’s property on Eakins Road alongside a supply well that was shut down and put into reserve in 2005 after elevated levels of nitrates were found in the water.
Since the tower’s last overhaul, temporary emergency repairs were made in 2012 to stabalize its corroding interior roof and sidewall interface, and again in 2013 to seal off the deterioration of roof rivets that officials said prevented potential water contamination, Manhasset-Lakeville officials said.
O’Brien said the tower’s reconstruction was part of the water district’s five-year capital plan and set to begin in 2015 or 2016, but was accelerated last year after officials agreed to remove a communications antenna that was put up on the Munsey Park property with little notice to the community. Funds for the project will be taken from a water district reserve fund, officials said.
The new tank will be positioned at the center of the site, and officials said the existing tank would remain in place during construction.
Two other buildings located on the property will be demolished and removed, officials said, as modifications will be made to the existing driveway and a new fence around the property’s perimeter is constructed.
<><>Munsey Park Mayor Frank DeMento said
Flower Hill Mayor Elaine Phillips, whose village borders the Munsey Park site, said the meeting provided a good opportunity for water district officials to understand some of the questions residents may have after Manhasset-Lakeville holds its public meeting.
“It’s pretty obvious from some of those pictures that it is aging pretty severely, and to rebuild it is just as cost-effective as replacing it,” Phillips said. “What I’d like to see is the entire community and all of the water district have a more serious talk about conserving the water. If they’re going to do it and do it bigger, I’d like to see a bit more of the conservation efforts to take care of the water.”
