Rose Ann Caraccio didn’t know what to do.
She had been calling the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for years, and still the catch basin on her Middle Village block remained unrepaired.
But when she saw an article in The Courier Sun earlier this month about how a story helped get a defective catch basin at 84th Street and 155th Avenue in Howard Beach repaired, she decided to give it one more try.
“An article in your June 2-8 [edition] regarding a defective catch basin being repaired caught my attention,” Caraccio wrote in an email. “We have a similar problem outside our home. Right next door [at 57th Avenue and 79th Street] the grating is sinking, the asphalt is soft, and you can’t park your car there (not to mention it’s very dangerous). It’s been this way for over three years. The neighbors and I have complained many times to the city.”
Mercedes Padilla, DEP spokesperson, did, in fact, confirm that there had been “several – at least 10” complaints throughout the years.”
And, she said, “There have been several inspections starting in April 2007.”
Caraccio said she last called the agency on July 20, 2009, and was given a reference number.
Five months ago, she said, a DEP truck was on scene and she was told “it had been written up many times.”
But, as of Monday, June 21, the problem remained, she said.
“My neighbor has a 10-year-old and the bus comes to pick him up,” said Caraccio. “I’m just afraid someone’s going to fall in.”
Padilla told The Courier Sun that the site is scheduled for repairs at the end of the week.
“We have a work order, everything in place,” she said.
