Residents of Stony Brook and nearby communities gathered Saturday in growing frustration over the stalled reconstruction of Harbor Road and the Mill Pond dam—washed out last year in a torrential August storm. The gathering drew more than 200 demonstrators to the edge of the now-drained Mill Pond, where they held signs reading “Fix the dam road” and “Stop ducking the problem,” demanding action after months of inaction.
While elected officials from multiple levels of government attended and echoed residents’ concerns, the impasse remains unresolved—mired in a bureaucratic tug-of-war over who owns the damaged infrastructure. The dispute has left the main thoroughfare between neighborhoods impassable and the historic pond reduced to a muddy crater.
The heart of the conflict is ownership—without a clear titleholder, no application for federal aid through FEMA can be filed. Brookhaven Town and Suffolk County officials say records indicate that the nonprofit Ward Melville Heritage Organization (WMHO) owns the road and dam. Speaking at a press conference the day before the rally, Brookhaven Supervisor Dan Panico cited 1980s-era documents signed by WMHO President Gloria Rocchio affirming ownership.
“We have proved conclusively who owns the property,” Panico said. “We just need a signature so we can move forward.”
Rocchio, however, told reporters Saturday that the nonprofit’s own title report found the issue “undetermined” and raised concerns about liability. “It’s very complicated,” she said.
Officials at the rally floated various potential resolutions—including arbitration or court intervention. But all agreed that a court case could drag on for years, and eminent domain is off the table because federal reimbursement would not apply to land seized by force.
Lisa Davidson, a rally organizer and trustee of Head of the Harbor, a village cut off when the dam let loose, said the event helped galvanize the community, though no immediate solution was in sight. “People are so fed up,” she noted.
The damage spans about 200 feet of Harbor Road and the underlying dam. The road straddles the border between Brookhaven and Smithtown, though officials from both towns say the damaged portion falls outside their legal jurisdiction. Meanwhile, the formation of a new riverbed in the drained pond could drive up the cost of any future reconstruction, further complicating the effort.
Some environmentalists, such as John Turner of the Seatuck Environmental Association, advocate for keeping the water flowing naturally rather than allowing the former Mill Pond to refill. They are also pushing to allow Stump Pond in Smithtown, which was washed out during the August storm, to remain in its natural state instead of rebuilding its dam as proposed by the county.