Page 8 • March 16, 2022 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT GUIDE
NYC Installs Moveable Flood Gate On Lower East Side Commissioner Thomas Foley of the NYC DDC photo Department of Design and Construction East Side Coastal Resiliency will use a (DDC) announced that the first massive gate series of berms, flood walls, flood that will help protect the Lower East Side gates and raised parklands to create a continuous 2.4-mi. barrier to protect from future coastal flooding was installed 110,000 residents of the Lower East Feb. 24 as part of the $1.45 billion East Side Side from future coastal flooding. Coastal Resiliency project. The 42-ft. long, 10-ft. high, 32,000-lb. gate is the first of 18 movable flood gates that will eventually be installed along the 2.4-mi. project. “Swinging and rolling gates are a critical design element of East Side Coastal Resiliency and allow for waterfront access while giving the city the flexibility to seal off areas before a future coastal storm or flood event,” said DDC Commissioner Thomas Foley. “We look forward to completing flood protection for 110,000 residents and to the open space and recreation improvements that are included in ESCR.” The gate installed was manufactured by Linita Design & Mfg. Corp. in Lackawanna, N.Y. The $1.45 billion ESCR project is projected to be completed in 2026. “East Side Coastal Resiliency will provide integrated flood protection for the surrounding community, and this movable gate is a significant step in making that NYC Department of Transportation for trafhappen. We continue to provide recre- fic, pedestrian and bike lane detours, issues ational resources and plant trees in the regular advisories to the community on neighborhood while resilient park progress and where future work will take improvements are underway,” said NYC place. DDC also has two full-time Parks Acting Commissioner Liam Community Construction Liaisons (CCL) Kavanagh. for the East River Park section of ESCR. ESCR will create an integrated 2.4-mi. CCL Joyce Xin, who is bilingual and fluent system of raised parkland, floodwalls, berms in Mandarin Chinese, will keep the neighand movable flood gates to create a continu- borhood apprised of construction progress ous line of protection against sea level rise and can arrange special requests. Xin works and the growing threat of stronger, more on-site and is directly accessible to the public severe coastal storms worsened by climate change. The project has DDC photo been designed to improve waterfront access through reconstructed bridges and entry points and also will upgrade existing sewer systems to capture and manage precipitation during storms. Construction of ESCR began in November 2020 at Asser Levy Playground, with major construction beginning in April 2021. In June 2021, the city announced almost $140 million of additional funding to add more community amenities as part of ESCR, including new public restrooms, improvements to a park amphitheater and, in a separate capital project, $129 million for the new flyover bridge for the Manhattan Greenway. Approximately 650-ft. of the project’s flood wall has been completA 197-ft.-tall Liebherr LTM 1130 crane prepares ed. DDC, in coordination with the part of East Side Coastal Resiliency.
at 929/844-0408 or by email at ESCRCCL1@ddccr.com. Sonia Quinones, who is fluent in Spanish, will further provide updates to the community. She can be reached at 347/628-8724 and via email also at ESCRCCL1@ddccr.com. Residents south of East 15th Street wishing to receive notifications about construction activities can reach out to be placed on the distribution list. A separate CCL manages community updates and special requests in northern
ESCR areas above East 15th Street. CCL Nadine Harris works at the site full-time and is directly available to the community at 347/572-3057 or ESCRCCL2@ddccr.com. Residents interested in receiving project updates for areas north of East 15th Street can contact her to be added to the public distribution list for that area. The level of flood protection provided by ESCR is equal to the region’s “worst-case” anticipated 100-year storm in 2050, based on future climate change projections produced by the New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC), an independent body composed of climate scientists that advises city policymakers on local resiliency and adaptation strategies. The project uses an adaptive design that can accommodate the addition of two more feet of elevation throughout the project area should sea levels in the coming decades rise faster than current projections anticipate. The city is sponsoring a “Call for Student and Community Art” for students and local artists to submit artwork for display on banners on the fencing surrounding ESCR construction. Students whose works are selected for display will receive a $300 award while local artists will receive $1,000. All students who submitted artwork will receive a Certificate of Participation.
to lift the first 32,000-lb. flood gate into place as see GATE page 109
