Yellow sand moving construction vehicles working on the beach

Dear Fire Islanders,

I am writing with very exciting news!! The US Army Corps of Engineers announced on Monday that they have officially awarded the contract to Great Lakes Dock and Dredge Co. for a PL84-99 re-nourishment of Fire Island's East End beaches!

This $52 million contract calls for a total of approximately 2 million cubic yards of sand to be dredged from off-shore borrow areas and placed on the beaches and dunes of our Brookhaven communities from eastern Seaview all the way to Davis Park.

This is great news for the storm-battered east end, and a fantastic outcome for all of Fire Island! After the recent rebuild of our western community beaches, this desperately needed east end renourishment means that all the beaches and dunes protecting our 17 communities will now be restored to the template of the post-Sandy FIMI project.

It’s also a big win for Long Island’s South Shore, which benefits significantly from the storm protection that our barrier island provides.

Suffolk County and NYSDEC applied two years ago to the Army Corps for this emergency east end repair. But the long and winding road from their initial request to Monday’s important announcement involved a concerted and determined effort from many individuals, organizations, and multiple levels of government. The Fire Island Association and our eastern communities, along with the passionate and relentless advocacy by the Pines and Seaview, worked together with all stakeholders to make this major contract announcement happen.

We are extremely grateful to all those who coordinated across jurisdictions to get this huge project approved, designed, authorized and funded. In addition to Fire Island’s long-time friend and advocate Senator Chuck Schumer, our key supporters in this PL 84-99 team effort include Senator Gillibrand, Governor Hochul, Congressman Garbarino, County Executive Romaine, Brookhaven Town Supervisor Dan Panico and Deputy Supervisor and Councilman Neil Foley.

We are also very thankful for the committed leadership of Colonel Alex Young, the Commander of the Army Corps New York District. Colonel Young has made this project a top priority and pushed very hard over the last several months to get us to this major contract award milestone. He has promised to work diligently with Great Lakes to make sure that the approved project gets started as soon as the weather, equipment availability, and logistical issues are properly aligned.

For additional details about the project and the process of getting it finally approved, please see the press release from Senator Chuck Schumer HERE and the press release from Governor Kathy Hochul HERE.

We owe many thanks to all our Fire Island champions! We are so lucky to have their amazing support!

Regards,