Whole Foods Sinking Into Gowanus Because Of Cleanup, Feds Admit

GOWANUS, NY — The Third Avenue Whole Foods is sinking toward the Gowanus Canal because equipment used for a federal cleanup of the fetid waters too forcefully shook the ground, creating fissures in nearby land, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Gowanus Canal is in the midsts of a years long Superfund cleanup to dredge the waterway's bottom of toxic muck referred to as black mayonnaise. In preparation for the cleanup, the agency preformed a pilot program at the Fourth Street Basin along Whole Food's promenade, but the installation of metal bulkheads on the canal's banks was too forceful and what was supposed to prevent land from eroding likely caused it to, an Environmental Protection Agency spokeswoman explain.

"A portion of the Whole Foods esplanade experienced some sinking several months ago as a result of the installation of sheet piling by contractors implementing the dredging pilot," said Mary Mears, a public affairs director with the Environmental Protection Agency.

The bricks lining part of Whole Food's esplanade just off of Third Avenue near Third Street have turned into a contorted wave while other bricks seem to be sinking into the soil beneath.

City engineers inspected the distorted walkway and ordered Whole Foods to hire an engineer to address the issue. The Department of Buildings received a 311 complaint about the problem in January and a violation was issued for the owner's failure to keep the area up to code. The city is monitoring the situation, but does not believe the issue poses an immediate hazard, a Department of Buildings spokeswoman said Wednesday.

The Environmental Protection Agency says it has altered how it installs the metal sheeting that lines the canal, meant to ensure aging bulkheads do not collapse, and believes the ground under the walkway was more susceptible to the issue compared to other areas.

"The sheet pile installation methods were immediately altered to prevent further issues," said Mears. "The sinking is caused primarily by the new soil present at Whole Foods, which is not as fully compacted as older soil elsewhere around the Canal."

Environmental Protection officials negotiated a deal between Whole Foods and those who were responsible for installing the sheeting that spurred the issue to pay for the repair work. The Environmental Protection Agency would not say who installed the bulkheads that caused the problem and if the agency plans to chip in toward the repair costs.

Whole Foods has closed off the stretch of promenade with signs that warn shoppers to "watch your step" and explains that "the promenade will be closed until further notice due to ongoing cleanup efforts and construction on the Gowanus Canal."

Whole Food's corporate office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Federal officials will use data gathered during the Fourth Street Basin's pilot dredging to finalize the cleanup plan for the waterway's northern portion by February 2019. The cleanup for that portion of the canal is expected to be done in 2022 and the entire cleanup will likely wrap up around 2027.

Photos courtesy of Caroline Spivack/Patch