Brown: “We are an old city …”
KINGSTON – The hole just got bigger, financially speaking. The Kingston Common Council approved $3.2 million in additional bonding Tuesday night, to cover ongoing repair costs for the city’s notorious Washington Avenue sinkhole near Linderman Avenue.
Voting was unanimous, bringing the total disaster price tag beyond $7 million, to date. Delays in work easement agreements postponed the long-awaited re-opening of Washington Avenue, from last Thanksgiving to sometime later this year.
The street has been closed for roughly four years, aggravating traffic and confusing unfamiliar motorists.
Alderwoman Deborah Brown spoke at length about the sinkhole, in her annual Minority Leader’s address to the Common Council, claiming the issue is indicative of long-term infrastructure neglect.
“I have seen and heard the snarky remarks and criticisms,” Brown said. “We are an old city, with old infrastructures, and the time for putting band aids on the problem is long-gone. To blame current administration is not productive; to politicize it is even worse. Previous administrations going back decades have all had a hand in this epic sinkhole.”
Majority Leader Matthew Dunn said they brought the sinkhole to the surface.
“None of us want the sinkhole to become another Boston Big Dig, and we don’t want to celebrate its birthday with another cupcake,” Dunn said.
There may be light at the end of the tunnel. US Senator Charles Schumer visited the sinkhole site earlier Tuesday afternoon, promising to lobby FEMA for disaster relief funding, based on Hurricane Irene’s contribution to the subsidence.
