Storm-destroyed Stony Brook mill pond, dam and bridge repairs await ownership ruling
A creek runs through the grounds of what was once the Mill Pond in Stony Brook, Thursday, Feb. 6, 2025. Credit: Newsday/Steve Pfost
Six months after torrential rain destroyed a Stony Brook mill pond, dam and bridge, lingering questions over ownership of the historic properties have slowed plans to rebuild, Brookhaven Town and Village of Head of the Harbor officials said this week.
Officials say they have pored over real estate documents — some dating to the 1600s — to determine what parts of the damaged area are owned by the Stony Brook nonprofit Ward Melville Heritage Organization and which might be publicly owned.
Town and village officials said they worried the Federal Emergency Management Agency would refuse to reimburse the $10 million project if the request for assistance did not come from the legal owner of the damaged areas. Brookhaven set aside $1.4 million last fall to pay for temporary fixes and engineering work for permanent repairs.
Nature, meanwhile, appears to have begun reclaiming the dried-out pond, as a narrow river now snakes through the barren mud.
Brookhaven Town had hoped to start rebuilding the bridge, dam and pond last fall. But officials aren't sure when work will start and the town's role is undetermined, Supervisor Dan Panico said.
"We just need clear guidance from FEMA and then we can all proceed," he said Monday. "I simply cannot outlay $10 million of taxpayer money unless I am assured by FEMA or New York State that money is going to be [reimbursed] for this kind of project."
FEMA spokesperson Kate Macedo said in an email Thursday the agency would "continue to offer support and guidance as needed" to help Long Island authorities "apply for eligible funding." In October, then-President Joe Biden approved a major disaster declaration, unlocking federal funds to help local governments and some nonprofits rebuild following the storm.
The centuries-old, human-made mill pond drained out when the dam was destroyed in the early morning hours of Aug. 19, 2024, as a storm drenched the North Shore with about 10 inches of rain, leaving an estimated $41 million in damage from Smithtown to Rocky Point.
The storm also took out the Harbor Road bridge, which spanned the dam and connected Stony Brook with Head of the Harbor.
The pond, dam and bridge all are within the 11-acre T. Bayles Minuse Mill Pond Park.
Though the park and bridge are open for public use, Brookhaven officials, citing title searches, believe they are privately owned by the heritage organization. Town and Head of the Harbor officials are trying to determine whether the FEMA application should be filed by the nonprofit, the town, the village or Suffolk County.
"It's a very esoteric legal issue as to who precisely owns that road, and we need to establish that for the FEMA application," Head of the Harbor Mayor Michael Utevsky said Tuesday.
Ward Melville Heritage Organization president Gloria Rocchio declined to comment.
Plans to rebuild the dam initially were delayed last fall after Brookhaven officials refused to speak to the heritage organization and Head of the Harbor because they filed legal papers indicating they planned to sue the town over the dam breach. Town officials agreed to resume talks with the nonprofit and village last month after they withdrew litigation plans.
Naturalists feared countless fish and turtles were flushed from the pond during the storm, and wildlife such as rabbits, birds and squirrels were killed or injured.
Meanwhile, every day that goes by is another day that wildlife returns to the pond, said Enrico Nardone, executive director of Seatuck Environmental Association, an Islip nonprofit.
He predicted the remains of the pond will "green up" in spring, attracting natural flora and fauna that had shunned the area when it was a pond.
"The birds really love those field habitats," Nardone said. "Come next fall it’s going to be full of birds and they’re going to love that space."
Nardone said his preference would have been not to rebuild the pond so that a river naturally would reclaim the area, as it had hundreds of years ago before the mill and pond were created.
The area needs further study of its habitat, he said, noting a cleanup volunteer last fall discovered a dusky salamander — a tiny species that Nardone said had not been seen on Long Island in a hundred years.
"Storms will just continue to carve out the original stream bed and native wildlife will continue to take advantage of that as long as it lasts," Nardone said.
Six months after torrential rain destroyed a Stony Brook mill pond, dam and bridge, lingering questions over ownership of the historic properties have slowed plans to rebuild, Brookhaven Town and Village of Head of the Harbor officials said this week.
Officials say they have pored over real estate documents — some dating to the 1600s — to determine what parts of the damaged area are owned by the Stony Brook nonprofit Ward Melville Heritage Organization and which might be publicly owned.
Town and village officials said they worried the Federal Emergency Management Agency would refuse to reimburse the $10 million project if the request for assistance did not come from the legal owner of the damaged areas. Brookhaven set aside $1.4 million last fall to pay for temporary fixes and engineering work for permanent repairs.
Nature, meanwhile, appears to have begun reclaiming the dried-out pond, as a narrow river now snakes through the barren mud.
Why rebuilding effort is delayed
- Lingering questions over ownership of a Stony Brook pond, bridge and dam destroyed by an August storm have slowed plans to rebuild, officials say.
- Officials are reviewing real estate documents to determine whether some parts of the damaged area are owned by municipal entities or by the nonprofit Ward Melville Heritage Organization.
- Land ownership is key to deciding who will apply for reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Brookhaven Town had hoped to start rebuilding the bridge, dam and pond last fall. But officials aren't sure when work will start and the town's role is undetermined, Supervisor Dan Panico said.
"We just need clear guidance from FEMA and then we can all proceed," he said Monday. "I simply cannot outlay $10 million of taxpayer money unless I am assured by FEMA or New York State that money is going to be [reimbursed] for this kind of project."
FEMA spokesperson Kate Macedo said in an email Thursday the agency would "continue to offer support and guidance as needed" to help Long Island authorities "apply for eligible funding." In October, then-President Joe Biden approved a major disaster declaration, unlocking federal funds to help local governments and some nonprofits rebuild following the storm.
Storm destroys dam
The centuries-old, human-made mill pond drained out when the dam was destroyed in the early morning hours of Aug. 19, 2024, as a storm drenched the North Shore with about 10 inches of rain, leaving an estimated $41 million in damage from Smithtown to Rocky Point.
The storm also took out the Harbor Road bridge, which spanned the dam and connected Stony Brook with Head of the Harbor.
The pond, dam and bridge all are within the 11-acre T. Bayles Minuse Mill Pond Park.
Though the park and bridge are open for public use, Brookhaven officials, citing title searches, believe they are privately owned by the heritage organization. Town and Head of the Harbor officials are trying to determine whether the FEMA application should be filed by the nonprofit, the town, the village or Suffolk County.
"It's a very esoteric legal issue as to who precisely owns that road, and we need to establish that for the FEMA application," Head of the Harbor Mayor Michael Utevsky said Tuesday.
Ward Melville Heritage Organization president Gloria Rocchio declined to comment.
Plans to rebuild the dam initially were delayed last fall after Brookhaven officials refused to speak to the heritage organization and Head of the Harbor because they filed legal papers indicating they planned to sue the town over the dam breach. Town officials agreed to resume talks with the nonprofit and village last month after they withdrew litigation plans.
Affects on wildlife
Naturalists feared countless fish and turtles were flushed from the pond during the storm, and wildlife such as rabbits, birds and squirrels were killed or injured.
Meanwhile, every day that goes by is another day that wildlife returns to the pond, said Enrico Nardone, executive director of Seatuck Environmental Association, an Islip nonprofit.
He predicted the remains of the pond will "green up" in spring, attracting natural flora and fauna that had shunned the area when it was a pond.
"The birds really love those field habitats," Nardone said. "Come next fall it’s going to be full of birds and they’re going to love that space."
Nardone said his preference would have been not to rebuild the pond so that a river naturally would reclaim the area, as it had hundreds of years ago before the mill and pond were created.
The area needs further study of its habitat, he said, noting a cleanup volunteer last fall discovered a dusky salamander — a tiny species that Nardone said had not been seen on Long Island in a hundred years.
"Storms will just continue to carve out the original stream bed and native wildlife will continue to take advantage of that as long as it lasts," Nardone said.
Carl MacGowan is a Long Island native who covers Brookhaven Town after having previously covered Smithtown, Suffolk County courts and numerous spot news and feature stories over his 20-plus year career at Newsday.
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