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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 12-104

December 28, 2012

CONTACT:

Chris Gilbride / Ted Timbers (DEP) (718) 595-6600
Joe Soldevere / Craig Chin (DDC) (718) 391–1641

City to Begin $14 Million Upgrade of Water Delivery System in Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Richmond Hill and Far Rockaway

Project Will Improve Water Quality, Pressure, and Distribution in These Neighborhoods

The New York City Departments of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Design and Construction (DDC) today announced a project that will replace aging water mains and improve the distribution system and water quality in Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Richmond Hill, and Far Rockaway, Queens. The majority of the unlined cast iron water mains in these neighborhoods are more than 60 years old. The $14 million infrastructure upgrade, funded by DEP and managed by DDC, will begin in March 2013 and include the installation of nearly 13 miles of new ductile iron water mains. The work will be done in phases with the full project expected to be completed in 2015.

“Public health and the future growth of New York City are contingent on having an adequate supply of high quality water and over the last decade we have invested $10.5 billion to upgrade our water supply and distribution systems,” said DEP Commissioner Carter Strickland. “By installing nearly 13 miles of new water mains we will ensure adequate water pressure for firefighting, basic sanitation, and clean drinking water for these Queens neighborhoods for decades to come.”

“Starting this spring, we will install almost 13 miles of new water mains to improve water delivery and quality for thousands of Queens residents. This will be a significant upgrade for the area’s water system, which is many decades old. We look forward to continuing to work with DEP to complete this and other vital infrastructure improvements for the borough,” said David Burney, Commissioner of the Department of Design and Construction.

New water mains will be installed on:

  • Union Turnpike between 164th Street and Utopia Parkway
  • Queens Boulevard between 69th Avenue and Union Turnpike
  • Queens Boulevard between 68th Drive and 76th Road
  • Queens Boulevard between 76th Road and Union Turnpike
  • Kew Garden Road between Union Turnpike and 80th Road
  • 76th Road between Queens Boulevard and Grand Central Parkway
  • Edgerton Boulevard between Grand Central Parkway and Croydon Road
  • 85th Avenue between 115th Street and Babbage Street
  • Park Lane South between 107th Street and Myrtle Avenue
  • Myrtle Avenue between Park Lane South and 111th Street
  • 85th Avenue between Myrtle Avenue and Metropolitan Avenue
  • Metropolitan Avenue between 85th Avenue and Hillside Avenue
  • Hillside Avenue between Metropolitan Avenue and the Van Wyck Expressway
  • 123rd Street between Metropolitan Avenue and Jamaica Avenue
  • 130th Street between Hillside Avenue and Jamaica Avenue
  • Hillside Avenue between Kew Garden Road and the Van Wyck Expressway
  • 111th Street between 101st Avenue and Atlantic Avenue
  • 111th Street between Jamaica Avenue and Atlantic Avenue
  • Jamaica Avenue Between 107th Street and 111th Street
  • 108th Street between Jamaica Avenue and Atlantic Avenue
  • 109th Street between Jamaica Avenue and Atlantic Avenue
  • 110th Street between Jamaica Avenue and Atlantic Avenue
  • 91st Avenue between 107th Street and 111th Street
  • Beach 9th Street between Central Avenue and Empire Avenue
  • Dinsmore Avenue between Beach 9th Street and Beach 12th Street
  • Beach 12th Street between Central Avenue and Dinsmore Avenue
  • Neilsen Street between Central Avenue and Dinsmore Avenue
  • Channing Road between Neilsen Street and Beach 9th Street
  • Bolton Road between Beach 9th Street and Sage Street
  • 134th Street between 91st Avenue and Jamaica Avenue
  • 91st Avenue between 134th Street and Van Wyck Expressway State Road West
  • 89th Avenue between 134th Avenue and Van Wyck Expressway State Road West
  • 135th Street between 89th Avenue and 91st Avenue

The work includes the replacement of 20 inch, 12 inch and 8 inch diameter water mains that serve residential and commercial properties. The new distribution system will also replace dead ends with looped mains and thereby improve water quality by ensuring that it is always moving.

This capital infrastructure upgrade is one of 217 similar projects in Queens that are either under construction now or are in the planning and design phase. Investing in water distribution and sewer infrastructure is a central part of DEP’s upcoming capital plan. In Queens, the DEP Executive Budget includes $921 million of capital investments from Fiscal Year 2012-21.

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing more than one billion gallons of water each day to more than nine million residents, including eight million in New York City. The water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the city, comprising 19 reservoirs, and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels, and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,500 miles of sewer lines and 96 pump stations take wastewater to 14 in-city treatment plants. DEP has nearly 6,000 employees, including nearly 1,000 in the upstate watershed. For more information, visit www.nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/nycwater, or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/nycwater.

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