Builder ‘committed to being good neighbors’

Responding to the outcry of Queens Village residents regarding construction at 113-35 Springfield Boulevard, a representative of the property owner has said that they have been “committed to being good neighbors” and insisted that, “every step of the way, we have done everything we could to address concerns that have been brought to our attention.”
Ethan Wohl told The Courier that he “slipped a note under her [Lourdes Dorce’s] door” in order to inform her of the impending construction well before work began.
Dorce, a Queens Village resident since 1973, claims that the work taking place near her house at 215-12 Murdock Avenue is causing major damage to her property.
However, Wohl disputes this.
“When Ms. Dorce first expressed concerns about the project, I pledged to make sure there would be no damage or disruption from our work,” he said. “She immediately hired a lawyer, however, and she and her lawyer have refused to even talk to us about how we can address their concerns.” Wohl added that that it is Dorce’s unwillingness to allow access to her property that is an issue.
He said that the construction site, family-owned for two generations, had been surveyed and the lot lines clearly marked after Dorce claimed work was being done on her property. In early January, he claims, there was a problem with an underground Verizon line. “It was exactly where the footprint of the building [a dollar store] was going to be,” said Wohl. He claims Verizon workers tried to gain access to Dorce’s property, but were denied.
The Stop Work order issued by the Department of Buildings (DOB) on the site, said Wohl, was a direct result of not being able to put up safety barriers or shore up Dorce’s property.
“We tried to work something out - committed to fixing her property - anything she wanted us to do we’d do,” said Wohl. “The response was ‘You’re not coming on my property.’ ”
“The goal is to not have a vacant property that’s not doing anything for the community,” he continued. “This is a building that should be in use, creating jobs and providing a service. An empty building does nothing for property values and contributes to crime.”
Addressing the flooding problems cited by neighbors, Wohl explained that, “over the past 80 years the water has been flowing onto our property from the communal driveway in the back. We are building underdrainage to handle the issue, but until the job can move forward, we cannot complete the drain work to address this situation.”
Wohl also said that they have offered repeatedly to address the flooding problem in Dorce’s basement, but “she’s refused to let us in her house to inspect or do any work.”
Reiterating that they are committed to being good neighbors, he urges that neighborhood residents with problems contact him at 347-262-2329.