Two wells to reopen as Glen Cove's water improves

Glen Cove officials furthered their efforts to provide residents with their own clean, independent water source by aiming to reopen two wells in Duck Pond by Dec. 7. The wells were closed earlier in 2018 due to high concentrations of Freon 22 within the water supplies. With these wells back online, there will now be three active wells at Duck Pond, as well as one on Kelly St. and one on Nancy Court.

The reopening of the wells is a direct result of the city’s recent ability to obtain a $3 million water infrastructure improvement grant from the state, the maximum amount of funding available by the state for such a project. Ann Fangmann, executive director of the Glen Cove Community Development Agency, indicated that the city needs a total of $5.15 million in order to fully complete its water purification process.

New York Assemblyman Charles Lavine has committed a $250,000 grant from his office through the Dormitory Authority of New York State, which is currently being processed. The Long Island Regional Economic Development Council has recommended another grant of $500,000, which must also go through the state before it is granted. “The grants are based on the need to reduce contaminants and have clean water,” Fangmann said.

The reopening of the Duck Pond wells is coming at the perfect time. City officials expect the population of Glen Cove to rise by approximately 10 percent following the addition of over 550 new units at Garvies Point by the fall of 2019, as well as the conclusion of the Village Square construction by the spring of 2020.

At the center of all of this is the city’s desire to remain autonomous over their own water sources.

Mayor Tim Tenke indicated that the city’s independent water sources would allow Glen Cove to avoid the issues other communities have had with outside companies such as American Water, including inflated prices for water. “You always want to be able to supply water at the lowest cost that you can to your residents,” said Tenke, adding that when a city maintains control over its water system it can to do that. “It’s an easy fix to let [American Water] come in and fix our water. But in the long run, the cost to the residents is astronomical.”

With these two Duck Pond wells reopening, city officials are looking to also bring the well on Seaman Road back online. In doing so, the city’s growing projects will have further support for their water usage. Originally shut down in 2010, the Seaman Road well requires an air stripper in order to fully remove all Freon 22 contamination. Luckily, the infrastructure for this project already exists. It’s simply a matter of being able to decontaminate the well’s water.

According to Tenke, putting the well at Seaman Road back into action is the final step in making Glen Cove a fully independent city when it comes to its water. “With five wells up and potentially with Seaman Road coming online,” he said, “we will have enough supply so that we don’t have to purchase water.”