BY DIANA BAUTISTA
A National Grid construction project in Bushwick has left neighbors confused and dealing with a lack of heat and parking, and noise complaints. For several weeks, the gas company has been digging up roads within the Bushwick neighborhood, temporarily closing down streets.
According to the National Grid website, the company conducts mandatory leak surveys and aging checks for all meters, including interior installations, in accordance with New York State local law 152. This law was passed in 2016 as part of a gas safety package which requires building owners to have their building gas pipes inspected periodically. Precision Pipeline Solutions (PPS), a qualified National Grid contractor, performs these inspections at no additional expense to their clients.
A permit is visibly present within the vicinity, authorizing gas system construction activities at various locations along Irving Avenue. Their work began on Jefferson Avenue and has extended to Halsey Street. The start date of the construction varies from street to street.
“Honestly I did not know that they were working on fixing the gas pipes. I normally see flyers on the poles but this time there was nothing,” said Jonathan Garcia, a resident of Dominican descent who lives on Jefferson Avenue.
In a neighborhood with a significant Spanish-speaking population, an English flyer may pose challenges for those who do not speak the language, as they may not understand the information of the flyer.
On a recent weekday, residents could be seen staring at the ongoing work with a look of concern on their faces. Neighbors talked about the difficulty of parking in front of their apartments, early morning drilling noises, and road closures that forced many individuals to change their driving routes. Additional issues were reported where many neighbors lacked heat in their apartments’ radiators, at the start of 2023 during the winter.
Danielle Cross, who lives in front of the construction site, said, “I haven’t been able to park my car for more than a week now. They start this construction early in the morning and continue until midday. Since I don’t want to wake up so early and move my car, I’m forced to park it far away from my apartment because most of the time there’s barely any parking in this neighborhood.”
Asked to comment, a National Grid worker said, “There are permits posted around the area to inform people about the ongoing construction. If anyone has any questions, they can call the number displayed next to the permit.” The worker wanted to be left anonymous. “We are doing our job, theres nothing we can do about it.”