A long-delayed effort to restore electricity and heat to the historic Rondout Lighthouse may finally get off the ground 13 years after Superstorm Sandy battered the Downtown landmark. City officials say the Federal Emergency Management Agency has committed to reimbursing 90 percent of the project’s estimated $6.5 million price tag.

The lighthouse marking the entrance to the Rondout Creek was built in 1915 and transferred to the city by the U.S. Coast Guard in 2002. The facility is maintained by the Hudson River Maritime Museum; it runs regular boat tours to the lighthouse which is only accessible by water. In October 2012 the lighthouse suffered extensive damage, including the loss of electrical and heating systems, when a record-setting storm surge flooded the city’s waterfront.

Plans to replace the damaged infrastructure have been in place since 2019 when the Kingston Common Council authorized the project to move forward. At the time, the estimated cost of the repair was $401,736. FEMA committed to reimbursing 90 percent of the costs while the state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services was slated to fund the remaining 10 percent. But the bond authorization was never finalized and the project languished during the pandemic. In 2022, the council revisited the issue and authorized a bond for $715,000 to carry out the work.

According to City Planner Suzanne Cahill, while the design phase of the project was largely complete, the project was again delayed when efforts to secure easements through private property to lay an underground cable took longer than expected. In a Nov. 25 letter to Common Council President Andrea Shaut, Cahil wrote that with assistance from consultants Weston and Sampson, the city had developed construction documents and acquired all necessary permits.

While the project is ready to go out to bid, Cahill wrote, the estimated cost has ballooned to $6.5 million. Cahill said that virtually all of the added expense was related to the purchase of marine cable which will cost $5.5 million. Cahill said other project costs include a barge, a staging area and specialized material, labor and inspection services. In an email to Kingston Wire, Cahill said that she had spoken with FEMA’s liaison to the city and confirmed that that the agency remained committed to reimbursing 90 percent of the total cost of the project. Cahill added that she had not yet confirmed whether the state would allocate funds beyond 10 percent of the original 2019 cost estimate.

The Common Council’s Finance Committee is expected to vote on the $6.5 million bond request when it meets on Dec. 10. Cahill said a representative from Weston and Sampson and New York State would join the meeting remotely to answer questions. If the bond authorization passes committee, the full council will take up the issue at its regular monthly meeting in January.