Sewer Project Starts Near Cemetery
Crews began on Monday, Mar. 5 a construction project that will bring new catch basins and a sewer line below Metropolitan Avenue in Middle Village in an effort to relieve regular flooding problems near an entrance to St. John Cemetery.
The project coordinated by the Department of Design and Construction (DDC) for the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) includes the installation of a sewer main nearly one-tenth of a mile long extending west from the intersection of Cooper and Metropolitan avenues to a gateway to the cemetery along the eastbound side of Metropolitan Avenue.
Long sought by Community Board 5 and local drivers alike, the work aims to eliminate a regular ponding condition at a dip in the near the cemetery entrance following periods of heavy rain. In some instances, the flooding becomes so heavy that it requires the closure of some or all lanes of Metropolitan Avenue while workers try to pump the water out.
Along with the installation of a 24″-diameter, 465′-long sewer line, the project also includes the placement of a new sewer chamber below the roadbed and four new catchbasins along the curb. It is expected to cost over $500,000 and take about six months to complete.
“For too long, even the slightest rain created dangerous flooding conditions on Metropolitan Avenue near St. John Cemetery,” said City Council Member Elizabeth Crowley in a statement. Crowley wrote to then- DEP Commissioner Caswell Holloway in April 2010 requesting that the agency investigate the condition.
“I’m pleased to have worked with DEP to remedy this nuisance for the community,” the lawmaker added. “Repairs like these are an investment in our neighborhoods that will improve the quality of life for residents for years to come.”
Crowley’s office also announced the completion of resurfacing of part of 80th Street between Caldwell and 58th avenues in Middle Village to eliminate a number of large sinkholes on the block.
