For years, residents of the city have been looking at levels of large metal-and-wood structures obstructing their views and detracting from the architecture of their workplaces. Some forms of the composition remain standing for a few weeks, while others become multiyear props that stir controversy among community members.
Often referred to as “sidewalk sheds,” the structures are erected over sidewalks to shield pedestrians from falling debris caused by building construction. According to the city Department of Buildings, the sheds are temporary structures meant to keep sidewalks open for pedestrians while structures undergo renovations.
Residents of Queens are quite familiar with them.
According to an interactive online map released in April by the DOB, the borough has 961 active sheds that stretch over 240,000 linear feet. As of Monday, it was noted that each shed is up for an average of 371 days. But many remain in place for several years.
Some note that they’re unattractive. Others cite the purpose they serve.
8 comments:
Alot of these companies are from out of town, mostly from NJ anf LI. The city needs to get these shady businesses out of here. They need to show some fucking respect!!
In addition, they often end up destroying and killing many sidewalk trees. There must be a sensible way to avoid this.
I much prefer to be hit by falling debris or garbage. We should take them all down now!
What nonsense.
They probably stay up so long because they can't finish any work because of repeated complaints.
what is the point of this article? sidewalk sheds are there for safety reasons, what is the argument here? they are unattractive? If one little piece of rock, cement, brick etc falls from a height on someones head, they will most likely be permanently crippled. These sheds are temporary and yes it does take at least one year to do a multi story building.
If these sidewalk shed companies don't give a shit the city should charge a fee for every day that they dont finish the work, $250 per day times 7 days is $1,650.On average their work is not finished until 9 months after the original deadline, so the fine will add up.
I've had rust from a shed fall into my collar! But I've known people killed by falling building debris. Maybe the issue in both cases has to be learning to be more considerate and responsible. Imagine that! Some of the fancier scaffolds look better than most living rooms. Perhaps the cost of construction permits should be incovenience-adjusted: if you disrupt traffic on the opposite side of the street from current construction, you pay more, same side, pay less. I often find myself crossing the street to avoid scaffolding.
Many sidewalk sheds have led to accidents both on the ground and on the streets. A truck crashed into one in midtown Manhattan two weeks ago. Last summer a badly installed shed fell ontop of people in downtown Manhattan. Luckily no one was injured.
The way it works is that if you get a violation you need to put up a shed within a week or some very short amount of time. After that it might be months until you can get a contractor to come to work on your building. It's not like they have people sitting around doing nothing
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