10 The Courier sun • JUNE 5, 2014 for breaking news visit www.couriersun.com Hamilton Beach residents stuck with ruined road BY ERIC JANKIEWICZ ejankiewicz@queenscourier.com @ericjankiewic In Hamilton Beach, residents say they witness new potholes and sinkholes form right before their eyes. On 104th Street, a main artery for cars, buses and pedestrian traffic coming THE COURIER/ Photo by Eric Jankiewicz Roger Gendron stands in front of the newest hole to develop in Hamilton Beach’s main road, 104th Street. CLAIMS POUR IN TO CITY AFTER SEWAGE BACKUP BY ERIC JANKIEWICZ ejankiewicz@queenscourier.com @ericjankiewicz Nearly 200 Queens residents filed claims against the city in the last week after storms left their homes swamped in rainwater and sewage, officials said. One hundred of those claims came from homeowners whose homes in Howard Beach and Lindenwood were flooded, who filed notice of claim forms supplied by City Comptroller Scott Stringer against the city’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), according to Stringer’s office. “We are going to do everything we can to get your money back,” Stringer said during a Howard Beach Civic Association meeting on May 27. His staff handed out the forms at that meeting so people could submit them directly to his office, rather than file one through a lawyer. A notice of claim is usually a precursor to a lawsuit unless the claimant and the city come to an agreement over payment. There are another 78 claims from other Queens residents who were affected by the storm, Stringer’s office said. For the locals who didn’t see much water damage during Superstorm Sandy, the flooding from the April 30 rainstorm was surprising, according to residents. But, according to the DEP, the flooding was not caused by nature. It was the result of a backflow from a local wastewater and sewage facility that is run by the agency. During rainstorms, the Spring Creek Facility is supposed to release the excess water into Jamaica Bay. But, according to the DEP, recently installed sensors failed to do this. “DEP found that the new electronic system malfunctioned, and releases into the bay did not promptly occur. As a result, stormwater and wastewater backed up into streets and homes in parts of the New Lots and Lindenwood neighborhoods,” according to a press release from the DEP. As the forms continue to come in, Stringer’s office is sending engineers out to verify the damages people claimed. “At first, I thought this flooding was God’s doing,” said Tommy Durante, a Lindenwood resident. “But then we found out that our government caused this. So how am I supposed to trust the comptroller’s office to get me my money?” Painters union fights St. John’s for summer jobs BY LIAM LA GUERE lguerre@queenscourier.com/@liamlaguerre Members of a local painters union feel that St. John’s University has brushed them off of summer jobs. Union workers and representatives of District Council 9 (DC 9) rallied in front of the university’s Gate 1 on May 29 to ask that the school negotiate a contract to paint and prepare vacant dormitories during the summer for when students return in the fall semester. The university uses dozens of nonunion workers to paint and prepare the dorms. “We want everybody to have a fair chance,” said Jose Torrent, a representative from DC 9. “We have a lot of members that live in the area — some whose kids go here.” Torrent said that last year the school said they would give the union a contract, but they never got to negotiate. Union workers have been used in previous university projects, such as the renovation of Carnesecca Arena and the transformation of St. Louise de Marillac Hall cafeteria years ago, Torrent said. According to a statement from St. John’s University, it accepted bids from union and nonunion painting companies for the summer jobs to prepare the dorms and chose a “competitive” nonunion offer. “The university prides itself in giving fair consideration to outside companies (union and nonunion) who contract with St. John’s for work-related projects at our New York campus locations,” the statement said. “In this instance, the university decided to accept competitive bids from nonunion firms.” THE COURIER/Photo by Eric Jankiewicz in and out of the neighborhood, a new problem developed over a just a few days. “On Monday there was a slight indentation on 104th Street and by Thursday it had become a fully developed sinkhole,” said Roger Gendron, president of the Hamilton Beach Civic Association. Residents trace the problem to 10 years ago when new homes were built in one section and the street was gouged in several places for sewer piping. Aside from the newly formed hole in the road, Hamilton Beach’s main road is pocked with numerous holes in a stretch that spans over 200 feet. The daily task of driving along 104th Street is fraught with indentations of all kinds that often force drivers to drive on the wrong side of the road to save their axles the abuse. The road also has a bus stop for the Q11 but there is no sidewalk for people to wait on, making them another obstacle that drivers have to look out for. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen the city do any work on these roads to fix these problems,” lifelong resident Marie Persans said. “We see Howard Beach getting paved a lot but all we get are patches that wear out in no time.” Persans is also the vice president of the civic association. Residents ultimately want the Department of Transportation (DOT) to put in a completely new roadbed that would elevate the road, preventing pools of water from collecting in the holes during rainstorms. They also want a waiting area for people using the bus. Department of Transportation spokesman Nicholas Mosquera said that the department doesn’t have the resources to make these long-term changes. “While DOT will look to include 104th Street in a future reconstruction schedule, the agency will continue to monitor the roadway, which was assessed last month, and repair potholes and perform any other short-term maintenance needs,” he said. City Councilman Eric Ulrich’s office has been working with the community to get the transportation department to get the resources needed for long-term changes, according to Sal Simonetti, a representative for the councilman. “These conditions are horrible,” Gendron said. “This is a very dangerous situation for everybody.”
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