South Blooming Grove mayor declares state of emergency with water shortage

SOUTH BLOOMING GROVE – Mayor George Kalaj has declared a state of emergency in the Village of South Blooming Grove for a 30-day period from October 6 because of its continuing water shortage.

The village has operated under water restrictions for several years due to insufficient water supplies.

He said the village has been forced to purchase 12 to 20 truckloads of water per day at significant expense and residents have had to endure several boil water restrictions.

The bottom line is the current water system is insufficient to meet the needs of the village.

The Orange County Department of Health has cited the village several times for water supply related issues and the village is under a consent order to develop long-term water supply improvements and is actively seeking sources of funding to make those improvements, the mayor said.

He said a viable source of water is a well – Capital #7 – and the village has entered into a lease with the landowner while seeking assistance from the state and county to bring that source online.

In the meantime, Kalaj said the state of emergency includes no watering of lawns and landscapes, no car washing, no use for ornamental fountains and no swimming pool or hot tub filling.