This morning, Congressman Mike Lawler joined leaders from Ossining, Somers, Cortlandt, and Mount Pleasant to announce $5 million in community project funding for Westchester County towns that was included in the federal funding bills for Fiscal Year 2024.
“When I was elected to represent this district, I promised that I would work with my partners at every level of government and in both parties to prioritize the needs of our residents – and that’s exactly what we’ve done in working with each of the officials here with me today to ensure funding for this and other important projects across our district,” said Congressman Lawler. “Projects like these are great examples of what we can accomplish when we put aside politics and focus on meeting the needs of our communities and constituents. That’s been my focus as Congressman, and that remains my focus with the most recent round of community project funding, which we submitted just a few weeks ago and will be unveiling more about later this year.”
“It’s often we hear from politicians telling us what they’re going to do to help the communities, but Mike has always come through,” said Mount Pleasant Town Supervisor Carl Fulgenzi. “We appreciate you not only talking about the needs of the local government, but following through and making sure we come through.”
“This community funding project is very important to our community,” said Ossining Town Supervisor Liz Feldman. “This water main is very old and has broken fifteen times in the last six years, most recently in front of the nursing home, where we had to bring in truck water to support the residents until we could get it fixed. It’s long overdue and we would not be able to accomplish this in a timely fashion without this funding.
“On behalf of Town of Somers Supervisor Rob Scorrano, I want to thank Congressman Lawler for this $2 million that his office secured,” said Mike Coughlin, representing Somers Town Supervisor Rob Scorrano. “This money will help us with our water projects, bringing fresh water to our business historic district that has been a problem for us for many years. The money will solve a PFAS problem that we’ve had and we are grateful for this generous grant.”
“We would like to thank Congressman Lawler for the $1 million for the Annsville Sewer and Water Infrastructure Project,” said Cortlandt Town Planner Chris Kehoe, representing Cortlandt Town Supervisor Rich Becker. “Annsville’s a gateway to the town of Cortlandt and Westchester County. We’re looking to both improve the economic development of the area and improve the environmental health of the area and this money is critical for that effort.”
Four separate requests were made for community project funding on behalf of the portion of Westchester County in New York’s 17th District. The funding includes:
- $1 million to Ossining to upgrade the community’s water distribution system, which includes the complete replacement of the Town’s old cast iron mains in the project area, improving water quality and reducing the need for costly repairs.
- $2 million to Somers to improve public health and drinking water quality by addressing PFAS issues in the downtown Business-Historic Preservation District.
- $1 million to Cortlandt for constructing a central sewer that would provide sewer and water service to the Annsville Creek section of the Town of Cortlandt, helping the town responsibly develop the area for commercial and residential use.
- Over $800,000 to Mount Pleasant and its Police Department for a sorely needed new dispatch system that will improve emergency response and coordination for a police force of approximately 50 officers who service approximately 35,000 calls per year.
Congressman Lawler is one of the most bipartisan members of the 118th Congress and represents New York’s 17th Congressional District, which is just north of New York City and contains all or parts of Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties.
