Politics & Government

Army Corps Completes Orient Harbor Sea Wall

Fragile section of Orient highway along Peconic Bay gets beefier protection from storm damage and erosion.

Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have finished strengthening a section of Route 25 just east of the along Orient Harbor this week.

The $1.5 million project, a collaboration between the Army Corps and the New York State Department of Transportation and funded in part by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, was designed to strengthen 350 feet of shoreline along the highway that had become dangerously vulnerable during storms.

“Completion of this project is critical to the safety of people living on the eastern end of the North Fork as it significantly reduces the erosion risk to Route 25, which is a critical evacuation route for those communities," New York District Army Corps Commander Col. John R. Boule said in a statement.

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The project, the first such agreement between the Army Corps and the Department of Transportation, was announced last July and was backed by U.S. Rep. Tim Bishop. Utility poles and other infrastructure vital to the area are also better protected by the improved sea wall.

“Thousands of motorists and residents can rest easy knowing their safety and ability to access this area have been protected from the forces of the Peconic Bay," said Department of Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald.

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