DEPOSIT - New York City officials said Tuesday they were optimistic they will soon have a short-term management plan to reduce the amount of water the city stores in its three Delaware River reservoirs in the Catskills.

The measure has been sought by flood-stricken residents downriver in neighboring states.

A plan may be worked out by Sept. 27 and can be presented at the next meeting of the Delaware River Basin Commission, the multistate agency that manages water resources in the Delaware Basin, said Michael Principe, a former deputy commissioner and now senior adviser for the New York City Bureau of Water Supply.

“I heard people here looking for a year-round program. We'll take it up with our technical group ... but I just don't think we're going to be able to make everyone happy,” Principe said at the conclusion of a public hearing held by the commission's Regulated Flow Advisory Committee, held at an angler's resort on the West Branch of the Delaware.

“We've pretty much agreed that conceptually, this is the way we need to go. We need to work out the details,” said William Gast, the committee's chairman.

Historically, New York has kept its reservoirs as full as possible to guard against drought. Built in the 1950s and '60s to supply drinking water to the city and suburbs, the Neversink, Pepacton and Cannonsville reservoirs are located in the Catskills, at the headwaters of the Delaware River. Together, they supply water to about 9 million people.

However, the reservoirs were at near 100 percent capacity during the devastating floods that occurred in September 2004, April 2005 and June of this year.

Unable to store water from torrential rains, the reservoirs spilled, sending billions of gallons cascading down the Delaware and into homes and businesses in September 2004, April 2005 and June 2006. Residents and experts believe that had the reservoirs not been so full, they could have stored some of that water and reduced the severity of the flooding downriver. About 50 people attended the 2.5 hour hearing, which also focused on developing a new, long-range multi-objective reservoir management program as well as immediate flood mitigation.