Clarkstown Supervisor Asks State To Help Pay For Pothole Repairs
CLARKSTOWN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Following two consecutive stormy winters, many New York municipalities are struggling to pay for pothole repairs.
Clarkstown Supervisor Alex Gromack has asked the state Legislature to dole out emergency road repair money -- a dollar-for-dollar match.
He said there is precedent for such a move.
"When I was in the Assembly many years ago, we had programs where added money was available, and certainly when you look at the two seasons of weather, 2014 and '15, and the record number of storms, this would be the year that that extraordinary help from Albany could really make a difference," Gromack told WCBS 880's Sean Adams.
Normally, Clarkstown budgets $3 million to fix roads. This year, it will cost an estimated $8 million.
"Literally now, we're seeing our roads crumble before our very eyes," Gromack said. "You can go on a road on Monday with no potholes, and on Tuesday there's craters."
Gromack also wants road repair expenditures to be exempt from the 2 percent tax cap.
Rockland's state lawmakers have told Gromack that as they negotiate the state budget, emergency road money is being discussed, he said.
Meanwhile on Long Island, Nassau County officials are urging people to report potholes using the "Nassau Now" mobile app, WCBS 880's Sophia Hall reported.
Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano said residents using the app can take a photo of a pothole and "we will receive the GPS coordinates of that pothole so there is no mistake in fixing the pothole or finding the pothole."
For more information on the app, click here.
People can also call 516-571-6900 to report potholes in Nassau.