Bill Funds Important Projects to Create Jobs; Promote Development in Westchester County
WASHINGTON, DC, August 1, 2010 -- Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-Westchester/Rockland), a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, July 30, 2010, announced the House-passed 2011 Transportation Appropriations Act contains $3.3 million for federal investments in roads, bridges, and public transportation in Westchester County.
“Federal assistance helps our communities finance important transportation infrastructure without raising local property taxes, and I am pleased that our region stands to benefit greatly from the 2011 appropriations process,” said Lowey. “The Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act will help many of our local governments create jobs while making our communities even greater places to live, work, and do business."
Congresswoman Lowey successfully included funding for the following projects in the House version of the 2011 Transportation and Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations Act:
· $600,000 to replace the Locust Avenue Bridge in the City of Rye, which has fallen below the floodplain, resulting in diminished structural integrity and serving as an unintended dam along the Blind Brook waterway.
· $500,000 to repave and repair 19 miles of roads in the Village of Ardsley, reducing upkeep costs and mitigating the tax burden on local residents.
· $200,000 to construct sidewalks in the most densely populated areas in the Town of North Castle, linking them to downtown businesses and increasing pedestrian safety.
Additionally, Lowey and Congressman Eliot Engel (NY-17) worked together to secure $2 million in federal funds to replace Bee Line buses in Westchester County with new, fuel-efficient hybrid buses.
“This project would help ease congestion on our roads and pollution in our air, while relieving local taxpayers of this financial burden,” said Lowey. I will work with Congressman Engel to ensure this important priority receives federal support.”
Lowey is a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee, where she chairs the State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee and sits on the Homeland Security and Labor/Health and Human Services/Education Subcommittees.
The 2011 THUD Appropriations Act was passed last night by the U.S. House of Representatives. It remains to be passed by the U.S. Senate and signed into law by President Obama.
