Infrastructure Investment Drives Romaine Agenda

County Executive Ed Romaine is putting infrastructure near the center of his agenda for Suffolk, outlining projects ranging from a new police headquarters and medical examiner’s facility to sewers, roads and transportation improvements.

“Nothing improves the productivity of a region than investment in infrastructure,” Romaine said during his State of the County address. “It is the one thing you can do to help raise the economic level of a region.

Among the largest projects is a new approximately 133,000-square-foot police headquarters at the former John J. Foley facility in Yaphank.

“We need a new police headquarters,” Romaine said, noting the existing building was originally constructed as a social services facility. “I want a building that is going to serve our police.”

Once police move, Romaine wants to renovate the existing headquarters for county agencies now occupying leased space.

“I want to pay less rent,” he said. “I’m looking to reduce our rent roll and own, because owning is always better, most of the time, than renting.”

The county is also building a new medical examiner’s office along with crime and environmental laboratories, which Romaine said will strengthen Suffolk’s ability to test drinking water and investigate contamination.

Infrastructure spending extends to parks and recreation. Romaine said Suffolk will rebuild facilities at Smith Point, including a new bridge and parking lot, while also moving ahead with reconstruction of a historic dam. He’s also looking to refurbish the Ponquogue Bridge in Hampton Bays.

Sewers remain among the county’s largest infrastructure challenges. Projects are moving forward in Holbrook, Oakdale and Smithtown.

“These projects are extremely expensive,” Romaine said, noting that sewering only part of Mastic cost more than $200 million. His plans included expanding the Forge River Watershed sewer system into the Mastic Peninsula.

Romaine also called for greater transportation investment, including better rail service and dramatically more freight movement by train.

Our highways are clogged with trucks,” he said. “We need better coordination between the Long Island Rail Road and those who provide freight.

His longer-term vision includes developing a Long Island freight center capable of moving goods onto and off the Island by rail. Part of that would be a market so Long Island produce won’t have to go to the city and back for distribution.

“That’s easy to say, very difficult to do,” Romaine told a meeting of the Suffolk Legislature where he gave his address. “But we have to start and demand more.”