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Sodus Point Mayor: "We were a lot more prepared this year."

Mayor McDowell says the town was prepared with more sandbags this season.
Veronica Volk/WXXI News
/
Great Lakes Today
Mayor McDowell says the town was prepared with more sandbags this season.
Mayor McDowell says the town was prepared with more sandbags this season.
Credit Veronica Volk/WXXI News / Great Lakes Today
/
Great Lakes Today
Mayor McDowell says the town was prepared with more sandbags this season.

Despite the high water, Sodus Point Mayor Dave McDowell says the village is in good shape for the season.

"We were a lot more prepared this year."

McDowell says they learned a lot from 2017 and have been preparing for potential flooding since January.

WXXI’s Veronica Volk reports on how one community is coping with the record high lake levels.

As a result, businesses are open, people are enjoying beaches and even fishing tournaments. He says some residents have also been able to raise their homes and break walls. But like many communities along the south shore of the lake, McDowell says they’re still looking for more help from the state and federal government.

"The money has always been competitive, and you need to spend a lot of money up front to even know what money to ask for."

Recently, the governor announced a new initiative to evaluate the shoreline and the potential to build resiliency in waterfront communities.

McDowell says he’s optimistic, but also that he thinks steps should have been taken before the lake level management plan was changed.

Copyright 2019 WXXI News

Veronica Volk is the Great Lakes Reporter/Producer for WXXI News, exploring environmental and economic issues, water, and wildlife throughout the region for radio, television, and the web.
Veronica Volk
Veronica Volk is a Reporter/Producer for WXXI News. She comes from WFUV Public Radio, where she began her broadcasting career as a reporter covering the Bronx, and the greater New York City area. She later became the Senior Producer of WFUV’s weekly public affairs show, Cityscape. Originally from Ocean County, New Jersey, Veronica got her B.A. in Communication and Media Studies at Fordham University, concentrating on Media, Culture, and Society.