Interest-free financing for sewer district announced

Warwick Town Supervisor Jesse Dwyer reported at the Sept. 11 Warwick Town Board meeting that the Wickham Sewer District project is eligible for interest-free financing, which could save the town $13 million over the life of the loan.

Dwyer, who noted that the town recently submitted its final grant application for the project, emphasized that the goal is to finance the project through grants, while acknowledging the importance of the income survey in ensuring the town could qualify for an interest-free loan.

“The goal is to get grant funding to cover 100% of the costs, but even without a dollar of grant funding, we have saved $13 million just on interest alone by doing the income survey. So that is how important it was to get that income data in, and all the hard work that everybody put into that. It was because we knew that this had monumental savings for the residents of that district,” he said.

During the meeting, Dwyer reported that the bike/hike trail connecting Hickory Hills Golf Course with Cascade Road is expected to be completed shortly with an anticipated ribbon cutting to be held on Sept. 22. He advised residents to check the town’s website or Facebook page for updates on when the trail would open to the public.

In other recreation news, Dwyer said a grant application has been submitted to support plans to convert the rink at the Warwick Town Park at Union Corners Road. He added that he expects an award announcement later this year or early next year.

An application for a grant under the Hudson River Valley Greenway’s Greenway Conservancy Trail Grant Program for the Warwick Town to Warwick Village Trail project was also approved. In addition, the town approved a contract with Ghostlight Theater Camp for the use of facilities at Mountain Lake Park.

During the meeting, an agreement to purchase development rights for a 62.6-acre farm on Jessup Road via a conservation easement for $340,000 was approved. Half of the purchase will be funded by the county through its Open Space Fund matching grant program.

Dwyer reminded the public of the ongoing work along State Routes 94 and 17A and to expect slower traffic in certain areas. He added that the state’s Department of Transportation will not continue this work after Nov. 1. Warwick DPW Commissioner Benjamin Astorino reported that the town’s culvert repair projects have been completed on time.

“I appreciate the DPW and everybody involved making that project move forward as fast as it did,” Dwyer said.