Monday, December 17, 2007

Barrier method

"Since 1999 when a questionaire was sent around to the residents of 57th Avenue, right off the LIE, we have been fighting a battle with the Department of Transportation regarding the installation of Noise Barriers.

Noise barriers are a good thing. However, this project was a waste of money.

The barriers were finally installed in the beginning of 2007.

Between the fact that they provide just about no relief from the noise, and they look like "crap", we have been at odds with the DOT.

They claim that everything was done according to blue prints, the designs were correct, etc.

We can write pages and pages of complaints we have, and the responses from the DOT that nothing is wrong. Our local politicians have tried to help us over and over again. They deserve medals for their effort. The DOT has been difficult.

In follow-up articles, we will give more details about this terrible situation, and how it is decreased our property values and not enhanced our property.

We are very angry at the fact that just across the LIE in Lake Success the barriers are much more professional looking, much higher in their construction, and use a much different finish & color. We were cheated in this regard."

57th Avenue Residents

Photo from NY Times

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is a real sore point with me. The barriers did not reach far enough past Crowely Park to extend West and past 80th St to at least the Railroad tracks. The noise at night and the early morning is terrible yet alone the fumes the additional lanes erected in 93 produce. Only Sen. Maltese responded to my concerns throughout the years and was able to arrange plantings to muffle the noise and absorb the fumes. Alas, some landscaping thieves in the middle of the night stole many of these plantings. I wholeheartly agree our barriers are outright ugly vs what Nassau and Suffolk have received. Why is that - because these areas are rich and the Pols in this area have Fed friends to insure only the best looking barriers were installed.

verdi said...

Planting a thicket of evergreen trees
would have done the job much better....
AND THEY'RE SELF MAINTAINING
in addition to being beautiful !

Aye....there's the rub.....
no tree cutting, excavation, planning studies,
concrete pouring, maintenance contracts, etc.
to be awarded!

We simply can't have that now !

What would our politicians do without
kickback money from contractors ?

Anonymous said...

unless you lived there prior to the highway being built...TOO BAD. you moved there knowing full well there was a highway there. the government shouldnt spend a dime on these things. nobody put a gun to your head and told you to move next to a highway, that was your choice. live with it.

Anonymous said...

Hey Jacko - I complete the questionaire which in conclusion was a choice of several configuations which resulted in a solution that was not disclosed until construction time. Adding 2 lanes in each direction added 100+ feet that towers high over the nearest homes. My property suddenly got much closer the highway, but I am not the closest property to the highway, I pity those you do. Now, it's much louder and way worse in air quality. The plans orginally called for barriers - I'll take the ugly barrier - but we didnt get it by us. Tree plantings absorb noise and help scrub the air if anything the greenery softens the nonbarrier wall and makes the area less monolithic - what's wrong with that?

Anonymous said...

the brown colored barriers in Nassau and Suffolk even have engravings of birds on them.

Anonymous said...

These barriers often become grafitti magnets.

Oh....wait a minute....grafitti removal.....
now there's another contract
that can be awarded to "friends"
who have served their politicians desires !