They want to keep the sea out of Canarsie
Neighborhood streets are getting a major makeover to replace failing sewers nearly four years after Hurricane Sandy devastated the area. The Department of Environmental Protection is pumping $56.5 million into the nabe to replace miles of sewers and water mains, hopefully reducing flooding during future storms. And the new pipes are long overdue, said a local pol.
“This is something we’ve been asking for from the day Sandy struck. The sewer system is old and not constructed to handle the load of thousands of new people,” said Councilman Alan Maisel (D–Canarsie). “The sewer system has to be upgraded, which they are doing — and it’s great, because we’re very happy when the city and the state pay attention to us.”
The Department of Environmental Protection did not respond to questions about why the project took so long to get underway.
The agency will complete work in three different phases — the first started at the beginning of September and is slated to be done in 2018. Phase-I work encompasses an area roughly bounded by Avenue J, Flatlands Avenue, E. 98th Street, and E. 108th Street. The second phase will begin in 2018, and the third gets started in 2020. All work should be done by 2021, according to information from the city.
And drivers should prepare for rolling street closures.
The city is closing side streets in the phase-I area, as well as one lane of Flatlands Avenue and Avenue J, from 7 am to 6 pm on weekdays, according to information from the city. Emergency vehicles will still be able to access the closed streets, officials said.
The city will have to shut off water service to replace mains, but it will provide advanced notice and will restore water by the end of the day. Workers will rebuild roadways, curbs, and sidewalks after sewer reconstruction wraps, officials said.
