Park Slope Residents Say They've Had Just About Enough Of Sixth Avenue Construction Project
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Inches of sewer and storm water in their basements, cracked and damaged homes, and noise are just some of the complaints from some Park Slope residents who say a construction project is driving them mad.
Water recently poured into a basement of a home on Sixth Avenue and Saint John's Place. Flooding is just one of many issues residents say they have been dealing with every time it rains ever since a since the massive construction project moved into their neighborhood last year.
"There's water gushing out the main, the pipe in my cellar," one resident told CBS2's Natalie Duddridge on Tuesday.
Another neighbor discovered water and mud in his basement after Monday night's rain, a problem he said he never had before, even during Superstorm Sandy.
"That never happened, even when we have severe, severe water," Ari Malul said.
Park Slope residents blame the construction work spanning Sixth Avenue from Union Street to Park Place, where the street has been dug up to replace underground water mains.
Some neighbors claim the constant jack-hammering is causing damage to their property.
"The vibrations are so great in this house that the interior is cracking and the exterior is cracking," Sal Lombardo said.
"It's very disturbing. It starts at 7 a.m. and wakes you up and it goes on all day," Peter Foges added.
And that's not all. Another major complaint is the traffic. Because part of Sixth Avenue has been shut down and cars have been re-routed down side streets, causing backups for blocks.
"Most of the time the street is blocked. You can't get through. So it just creates real heavy cross traffic," said Rachel Wood of the neighborhood block association.
Residents have been complaining to the city about the endless issues and lack of communication.
The city would only respond to CBS2 by email, saying it is looking into the flooding reports, but that this area has historically had drainage issues, which is why large storm sewers are being installed in the first place.
The city says that section of Sixth Avenue will be done in a month. The overall project in the neighborhood still has two more years of work to go.
