Manhattan Residents Raise Concerns Over 2nd Avenue Subway Project Blasting
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Residents on the Upper East Side claim vibrations from the regular blasting at the Second Avenue subway construction site is damaging their historic brownstone properties.
There are 45 landmarked homes between Second and Third Avenues stretching from East 60th Street to 63rd Street.
1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck reports
Podcast
Many of the homes in the area were built in the late 1800s.
"I worry about the building because it's moving," one resident told 1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck. "I'm wondering if one of them will fall down eventually."
He claims there are cracks on the walls and staircase all the way to the fourth floor of his East 62nd Street brownstone.
Many of the complaints have also stemmed from vibration and drilling holes in preparation for the next day's blasts. MTA Capital Construction says that it has tried to "re-sequence construction work activities," but that the nature of the work and restrictions placed on the agency have rendered the attempts "only partially effective."
"MTACC is still working on addressing the ongoing noise issues after 10 p.m.," said MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz.
The MTA is restricted from blasting after 7 p.m. and no trucking is allowed after 10 p.m. The agency says that those rules make it difficult to do things like install rock bolts, drill holes in the rock for the next round of blasts and load explosives.
Some homeowners are considering asking for an injunction to stop the blasting.
Ortiz said that engineers have offered to visit some apartments to assess the noise and evaluate the residents' experience to see if there is anything they can do to remedy their complaints.
