Hewlett Harbor Mulls Takeover of Private Roads

The Village of Hewlett Harbor is considering taking over six private roads in the interest of the roads' residents, but the unnamed streets are in dire need of resurfacing.

"These roads need to be worked on," Mayor Mark Weiss said at the board of trustees' meeting on Thursday night. "There is a safety issue here and there is a certain criteria that has to be met."

The safety issues include numerous potholes that may inhibit fire emergency vehicles and ambulances from traveling down the roads. There is also a potential snow removal problem with what looks to be a cold winter ahead.

"We would like to have these roads in the same condition as any other road in our village," Weiss said.

There are a few conditions that need to be met before work can begin on the roads, officials said. The first one is that the surface of each of the roads has to be in at least a passable condition. The underlying drainage system needs to be looked at to ensure proper runoff is taking place. The width of the roads also needs to be measured to make sure they are wide enough for construction.

The Engineering Firm Carman-Dunne has been hired to survey the project.

"We owe an obligation to our residents to take care of this," Weiss said. "Before we make a decision, I think it would be a good idea to let them discuss with us their vision before any work is done. It is in our best interest to take care of this now because ten years from now we don't want to have these roads deteriorated beyond repair."

Meanwhile, Rockville Centre resident Charles Casolaro was introduced as the new village attorney. He will take the place of Merik Aaron, who won the November election for judge on Nassau County Family Court.