Hudson Valley Sinkhole Costs Top $10 Million

The infamous sinkhole in Kingston continues to give local taxpayers a major headache after total costs have topped the $10 million mark. What began in 2011, has become a six year long saga to find a solution that works. Now that the sinkhole has been fixed, issues caused by the repair work continue to linger.

Initial efforts to fill the sinkhole were ineffective and had to be re-done. But when the issue itself was resolved, it was found that grout used during the repair work had leaked to a sewer line causing a blockage. According to Hudson Valley One, this issue was discovered in 2015. Since then Arold Construction has been removing the grout from the sewer line through the use of robot technology.

Expenses were thought to be in the $1.1 to $2.5 million range for this phase of the work. $1.1 million had already been approved by Kingston City council, but a vote just last week approved an additional $1.1 million. A federal grant covered just over a million of the expenses but local residents are on the hook for the rest through a series of bonds.