Peninsula Boulevard sewer project a problem

No matter how the work is conducted it seems that residents and motorists are very unhappy with Nassau County’s Peninsula Boulevard sewer project that has been underway for the past several months.

If it isn’t large construction vehicles taking up huge swaths of side streets such as the equipment that was parked on Westminster Road in Cedarhurst, it is bigger than usual potholes forcing drivers to apply evasive maneuvers to avoid them and in the process nearly causing accidents.

The $13,513,313.33 county sewer project spans from Harris Avenue to Rockaway Turnpike on Peninsula Boulevard and involves the installation of approximately 14,100 linear feet of brand new 20-inch force main piping to connect the Inwood Pump Station to Harris Avenue.

In addition, a new interceptor manhole is being constructed to connect the new piping with the existing 60-inch interceptor pipe at the intersection of Harris Avenue and Peninsula Boulevard to move sewage to Nassau’s Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant in East Rockaway.

However, while those that live on Peninsula Boulevard and its many side streets understand why the work is being done, what they don’t comprehend is why their streets are taking such a beating even after a portion of the work has been completed.

“There are gaping holes, craters from corner to corner in front of every house,” said Gail Siciliano, a Westminster Road resident. “It has gotten out of hand with the block being used as a parking lot.”

Siciliano also complained that some work was done at night with jackhammers banging away on a Sunday night at 11:49 p.m.. “It was not fun,” she said, adding that the work hampered snow plowing efforts throughout the winter.

County Department of Public Works Spokesman Michael Martino said that the department does provide oversight to the project. He said they checked with West Babylon-based A.L.A.C. Contracting Corp., the company performing the work, about these problems.

“There was work done at Westminster at night because it was unsafe to do during the day and it was short term,” said Martino, who noted that due to adjusting for the weather, “It is difficult to give a detailed work schedule.”

Martino said previously the work that began in the fall, is being done from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. during the week. Installation of the main force piping is expected to be completed by June and the entire project is anticipated to be done by September as the entire length of the roadway where the force main piping was installed would require a “final repavement restoration,” he said.

That repavement can’t come soon enough for Hewlett Harbor resident Robert Friedman, who said that he nearly missed being in an accident when another motorist moved over to his lane to avoid a pothole Friedman described as almost three-feet in diameter.

“Driving on Peninsula Boulevard is like driving in Libya,” he said referring to the size of the potholes. “I was nearly pushed into oncoming traffic.”

When the county receives complaints about potholes that are its responsibility Martino said: “They are generally fixed within twenty-four hours.” To register a pothole complaint with Nassau’s DPW call (516) 571-6900.