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Cuomo comes to Greece to offer more state aid for lakeshore property owners

Randy Gorbman
/
WXXI News

Governor Andrew Cuomo made a stop in the Town of Greece on Monday, at a house on Edgemere Drive, one of the areas that was hardest hit by the recent flooding along the Lake Ontario shoreline.

Cuomo came to the home of Joe and Charlie Burgio, one of the many houses where water has poured over decks, washed out docks and caused basement flooding.

The governor previously pledged $10 million in state aid for eligible municipalities and up to $5 million in grants for small businesses.

On Monday, Cuomo announced new funding of $7 million dollars to help homeowners.

“To reimburse them for damage to their homes, up to $40,000 per home, depending on the income level. This is for foundation work, deck work, basement work, etc.”

Cuomo also says he has signed a bill that will fast-track emergency funding for water infrastructure emergencies, such as the problems that have occurred along Lake Ontario.

Credit Randy Gorbman / WXXI News
/
WXXI News

And the governor also directed the NYS Parks Department to implement a five mile per hour speed limit to control wakes within 600 feet of the Lake Ontario and Saint Lawrence River shoreline in an effort to reduce the impact of wave action on shoreline properties.

Cuomo got cheers from the crowd of homeowners who came to see his news conference when he criticized actions taken by the International Joint Commission, which tries to regulate the lake level.

“I understand that they have a lot of concerns that they have to deal with and they’re dealing with Canada and Montreal, and St. Lawrence (River). I represent the people of the state of New York, and the people of the state of New York are getting the short end of the stick, right, and their homes are getting flooded.

Officials with the IJC have maintained that the flooding this spring was due to an unusual amount of rainfall, not recent changes made in the way the lake level is regulated.

Charlie Burgio says she's not getting much sleep these days keeping an eye on three pumps used to keep the water from overwhelming her house.

“I have the pumps here, so I have to get up every three hours, and rotate them, because I don’t want them to burn out, and my husband’s right here so I have to make sure that I’m quick to change everything over and not wake him up.”

Burgio says her situation is complicated by the fact her husband is confined to a wheelchair. But she says people in that area are working together.

“So I don’t know what we’re going to do, I’m determined that I’m not going to let this get me. And my neighbors are great, we help each other.” 

Here is video from Gov. Cuomo's meeting with Joe and Charlie Burgio at their Edgemere Drive home:

Here is video from Gov. Cuomo's news conference in Greece on Monday: 

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.