CIP bridge springs a leak

Arthur Pace

From the Times Ledger:

A Whitestone man is calling out the city Department of Environmental Protection for not aggressively handling water leak problems at his home.

Arthur Pace, 53, said that in March, his wife was in the backyard of their home at 146-45 13th Ave. when she heard water spewing out of the abutment that supports the bridge onto the Cross Island Parkway. The backyard is near the bridge.

She called 311 and was referred to the Fire Department, which came and said the DEP would have to fix the problem.

Between March and the middle of August, Pace has called 311 eight times. He said that although the DEP has sent workers to address the problem, they did not do much to fix it except for shutting off the valves on either side of the bridge.

Water was running into Pace’s driveway and the saturated soil caused cracks in the sidewalk. He also noted that cars often use the middle lane instead of the exit lane to miss the water. And people have been walking in the streets to avoid the sidewalks.

Two weeks ago, DEP workers came to the home, but they said the contractor was busy in the Bronx, Pace said.