4 JULY 26, 2018 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
City DOT takes two years to resolve broken Maspeth guardrail
BY RYAN KELLEY
RKELLEY@RIDGEWOODTIMES.COM
TWITTER @R_KELLEY6
A potentially dangerous street
condition in Maspeth is fi nally
being addressed by the Department
of Transportation (DOT) more
than two years aft er a local resident
fi led a complaint with the agency.
The situation was brought to light
in January of 2016 by Middle Village
resident David Paz, who informed the
DOT that a guardrail along the south
side of 56th Road between 43rd Street
and Maspeth Avenue had been severely
damaged and needed to be repaired.
Photos revealed that the guardrail
was in fact lying on the sidewalk on
many parts of that stretch, detached
from the bollards that normally hold
it in place.
The rail serves as a barrier between
the sidewalk and the Long Island Rail
Road (LIRR) tracks used for freight
operations, and the industrial area is
frequented by large trucks that park
along 56th Road.
On July 19, more than two years later,
a DOT spokesperson confi rmed that
jersey barriers — concrete or plastic
barriers typically used to separate traffi
c — would be installed at the site this
week, weather permitting. The statement
came aft er the Ridgewood Times
obtained copies of letters between DOT
offi cials and Assemblywoman Catherine
Nolan, who had been advocating for
the guardrail to be fi xed on Paz’s behalf,
revealing that the agency had stalled in
its response to the matter.
Aft er Paz fi led his complaint, Nolan
also sent a letter to the DOT in January
of 2016 to inquire about the unsafe
guardrails. In the agency’s response
to Paz in March of 2016, it said “we appreciate
your concerns and will make
every eff ort to address the issue that
you’ve raised.”
The following May, Nolan received
a letter from DOT Commissioner
Polly Trottenberg explaining that the
guardrail “cannot be easily repaired”
because it is encased in cement. The
guardrail must be removed, redesigned
and then re-installed, the
letter said.
“DOT’s Design and Construction
Unit will begin the redesign process
and DOT’s Arterial Maintenance and
Sidewalk Management Divisions will
work together to install the new guardrail,”
Trottenberg said in the letter.
Well over a year later, however, Paz
wrote to Nolan in October on 2017 to
tell her that nothing had been done
about the condition of the dangerous
guardrail.
Nolan continued to apply pressure
to get information from the agency
by sending another followup letter to
Trotttenberg in May of 2018.
“Due to the seriousness of this situation
and the extended period of time,
I would like to know an update on the
work being done to correct this very
dangerous situation,” Nolan wrote.
Three weeks later, Nolan received a
response from DOT Queens Borough
Commissioner Nicole Garcia, who
apologized for the delay in repairing
the guardrail. Garcia explained that
since the guardrail runs along the
LIRR tracks, the DOT had to coordinate
with the MTA regarding its
replacement.
Garcia also said that 80 to 100 feet
of jersey barrier would be installed
along 56th Road from 48th Street to
49th Street this summer.
While it is framed as good news, that
Photo via Google Maps
is only a fraction of the area that Paz
originally pointed out, and it’s only a
temporary solution.
The DOT will notify Nolan once it
has installed the barriers, Garcia said.
Going cruising in classic car style
in Glendale to help local hospital
Photo courtesy of the East Coast Car Association
The East Coast Car Association held its seventh-annual Classic Car
Cruise night on Wednesday night, July 18, at The Shops at Atlas Park
in Glendale. The event helped two local charities serving people in
need across Queens.
More than 120 classic custom cars and motorcycles were on display at
Atlas Park. The event featured live music from the Joe Fuoco Music Center
and autographed sports memorabilia sales.
Proceeds from the cruise went to the ECCA’s annual pre-Christmas toy
drive for the youngsters at St. Mary’s Children’s Hospital in Bayside. ECCA
members also collected canned food from guests for donation to the nearby
Sacred Heart Food Pantry, which serves needy families in the Glendale area
Shown at the cruise are (from left to right) ECCA members John Taylor,
Mike Bilski and Sandy Bilski; state Senator Joseph Addabbo, and Peter
Delucia and John Carmona of Atlas Park.
The broken guardrail along 56th Road in Maspeth.
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