PlanNYC: Van Cortlandt Park Filtration Plant News

Blasting Off the Table for Jerome Park but Community Still Concerned

2008-09-15 00:00:00

The city�s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has abandoned its plan to blast large amounts of rock at Jerome Park in order to build necessary shafts for the Croton Water Treatment plant, which will be located under Van Cortlandt Park and will instead use a large jackhammer to complete the work. A temporary restraining order was lifted by the courts after the DEP switched to using the jackhammer. Opponents are still concerned about the city�s decision because surface drilling was excluded from the Environmental Impact Study (EIS) and they believe the city should be required to complete a supplemental EIS. It is not clear whether those opposed will appeal the court�s decision to lift the temporary stop-work order. The work is supposed to take about 6 weeks to complete.

Croton Filtration Plant Work Continues Under Scrutiny

2008-08-28 00:00:00

Work on the Croton Water Filtration Plant in Van Cortlandt Park continues, in spite of delays, budget overruns, and scandals. The project, which was ordered by the federal EPA and will result in the first water filtration plant in New York City, is being closely monitored by three city agencies, as well as several community leaders. State Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz complains that the project has been mismanaged in the past and is an example of �government at its worst.� City officials remain optimistic that the plant will bring benefits that outweigh the problems and criticisms that the project has incurred.

Renovated Parks Financed from Croton Filtration Plant Agreement Open in the Bronx

2008-08-14 00:00:00

Four recently renovated parks in the Bronx opened to the public. The renovations to the park facilities were financed through a fund of $200 million that was set aside for by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the city�s Municipal Water Finance Authority to make up for loss of parkland and community disturbance during the Croton Water Filtration Plant construction. 75 projects will be financed through this fund.

Rat Infestation Could Further Hold Up Jerome Park Reservoir Blasting

2008-08-11 00:00:00

City plans to blast at the Jerome Park Reservoir may be further delayed due to a potential rodent problem. A community lawsuit is already holding up plans for the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to connect the reservoir to the water filtration plant being constructed in Van Cortlandt Park, and now the City�s Health Department claims that the site is filled with rats that could disperse once the blasting starts. DEP maintains that they are already working with a rodent control company to deal with the issue.

Jerome Park Reservoir Blasting Delayed on Judges Order

2008-07-31 00:00:00

Justice Betty Stinson, a State Supreme Court Justice, has temporarily stopped the City�s plan to blast rocks as part of the construction of the Croton Water Filtration Plant until a decision is made on whether a full Environmental impact study is needed, which is expected on September 3rd. Residents of the area have raised concern about the noise generated from the blasting and the increase of truck traffic through the streets in order to cart away the blasted rock.

Neighbors Concerned About DEP�s Use of Blasting For Croton Water Filtration Plant

2008-07-27 00:00:00

The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) announced a few weeks ago that they would be blasting tunnels for the Croton Water Filtration Plant in Van Cortland Park rather than drilling them, as had originally been planned. Local residents are concerned about the noise and air pollution that may be caused by the blasting. Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz asserts that DEP officials assured neighbors that no blasting would be used in the construction in order to sell the plan, and says that the new plan varies drastically from the one assessed in the project�s environmental impact statement (EIS). Dinowitz is calling for a revised EIS before the blasting begins. The DEP says that the blasting, which is scheduled to begin in September, will be quieter and quicker than drilling.

Community Boards Will Hold Hearings on Water Blasting Concerns at Jerome Park

2008-07-10 00:00:00

In response to public concern over the City�s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) plan to use water blasting and trucking out debris through neighborhood streets while working at the Van Cortlandt Filtration Plant project, three community boards in the Bronx will host a public hearing. DEP has said that the new method will cut costs on a project that is already over budget and delayed. Some residents are concerned about the decision to use explosives in a neighborhood, close to three high schools.

Cost Estimates Continue to Rise for Van Cortlandt Filtration Plant

2008-04-24 00:00:00

The price tag for the Van Cortlandt Park filtration plant, which is to be one of the world�s largest filtration plants, is now estimated to be upwards of $3 billion � and possibly even more � a significant increase from the original estimates of $660 million. The City claims that the increased cost is due to inflation and increased construction costs. While opponents of the project are realistic about the inevitability of the project moving forward, they are hoping that the City comptroller�s audit of the project will help to uncover �any wrongdoing in the site selection process.� An alternative site in Westchester was dismissed because it was determined that building the plant underground in the Bronx would be cheaper, a notion that opponents question. The plant is being built to filter water from the Croton watershed, which is currently not up to federal standards.

Van Cortland�s Filtration Plant Project to be Audited

2008-04-10 00:00:00

City Comptroller William Thompson and the Independent Budget Office (IBO) have agreed to audit the construction of the Croton water filtration plant in Van Cortland Park after requests from the project�s monitoring committee in February. The purpose of the audit is to determine whether the construction complies with all regulations and requirements and is being conducted effectively. The project has already faced extremely high cost overruns, totaling almost triple the original anticipated costs. In addition to budget problems, the project, which is being run by the Department of Environmental Protection, has been linked to mob operations.

Call for Investigation at Water Filtration Plant Renewed

2008-02-19 00:00:00

Assembly member Jeffery Dinowitz, a longtime critic of the Croton Water Filtration Plant to be built in Van Cortlandt Park, has renewed his call for an investigation because of recent mob arrests. Dinowitz believes that the public should know fully to what extent, if any, organized crime was involved in securing contracts for the water filtration plant. Schiavone Construction Company, who was awarded a $1.3 billion contract for the plant, was recently implicated in the Gambino mob case. Increasing costs have also outraged many local officials who opposed the siting of the filtration plan in the first place.

Assembly Member Claims Van Cortlandt Filtration Plant Costs Inflated

2007-11-27 00:00:00

In response to the increasing costs of the Van Cortlandt Park Filtration Plant, Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz has issued a report stating that the current price tag for the project is vastly inflated. The NYC Department of Environmental Protection argues that Dinowitz's calculations do not take into consideration several important factors, including the entire time period of the project.

Assembly Members Request Investigation of Filtration Plant Costs

2007-11-04 00:00:00

Many Bronx assembly members are concerned that the Van Cortlandt Park Water Filtration Plant, which is currently $1.5 billion over budget, will pass along costs to consumers. Seven of the borough�s 11 New York State Assembly members have sent letters to various state and city officials asking for hearings and an investigation of the overrun in costs. The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) says that the project is over budget because of higher construction and fuel costs. Legislators are also concerned with ensuring jobs at the plant for local residents. DEP has created a program, Project H.I.R.E., to train Bronx residents in construction skills, though there is no guaranteed job placement.

Costs Underestimated for Filtration Plant, says IBO Study

2007-09-28 00:00:00

Analysis by the Independent Budget Office (IBO) says that the cost of the Croton Water Filtration Plant was underestimated. The study concludes that the current cost is $2.8 billion compared to the $2.1 billion that city�s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) claims it will cost. Some plan opponents are using the new budget numbers as further evidence that the plant will cost residents more in taxes than was originally planned. DEP is pointing to different accounting practices and additional costs included in the IBO�s numbers as the only difference in the two estimates.

City Fined over Filtration Plant Delays

2007-08-11 00:00:00

The City of New York is being fined $30,000 a day by the federal government because it has yet to choose a contractor for the $2.1 billion water filtration plant to be built in the Bronx. The Croton Water Filtration Plant was originally projected to cost $992 million and be complete by 2012.

Federal Fines Building after Delay at Van Cortland Filtration Plant

2007-04-22 00:00:00

The pull-out of the chosen contractor for the Croton filtration plant is now costing the city thousands of dollars a day in federal fines because of a missed deadline in reassigning the contract. The city has contacted the second lowest bidder but negotiations are still underway, and it is uncertain when a deal will be completed. The fines already total over $1.1 million and could go pass $1.5 million by May 9th.