Real Estate
Upper West Side NYCHA Building Getting Scaffolding Shed Removed
Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Wednesday that scaffolds at NYCHA developments across the city will be removed, including on the UWS.
UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — A $111 million investment will tear down unsightly scaffolding sheds that have stood at NYCHA properties for years, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Wednesday. De Blasio said the money will go toward fixing facades and removing scaffolding at 45 buildings across the city within 15 NYCHA developments.
On Thursday, Patch learned that one of those NYCHA developments losing its scaffolding will be on the Upper West Side.
A spokesperson from NYCHA said that two buildings in the Douglass I development between West 102nd and West 104th Streets will get facade repairs and scaffolding removals.
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The spokesperson did not specify which buildings, though.
There is currently one active sidewalk shed within the Douglass 1 development at a building on 830 Columbus Avenue, according to the Department of Building's active sidewalk shed map.
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However, the Department of Building sidewalk shed map does not 100 percent show the accurate number of scaffolding sites due to the materials not always coming down when the permit expires.
The map says the 191-foot shed first went up in October 2017. Its permit expiration date now reads Oct. 27, 2021, which was Wednesday, and the same day that the mayor announced the initiative to tear down the NYCHA sidewalk sheds.
It's unclear if the Upper West Side NYCHA building's sidewalk shed expiration date was updated to match the new plan or it happened to fall on the same day as the mayor's announcement.
Sidewalk sheds are part of everyday life in New York City.
Local law requires them as a safety feature when buildings undergo facade work. The sheds help protect pedestrians from falling debris.
But the sheds can stand for years, becoming more-or-less permanent fixtures in neighborhoods. One in the West Village stood for two decades, on and off.
Council Member Ben Kallos has proposed legislation to make sure sheds stand for no more than 90 days. And de Blasio on Wednesday said the city's Department of Buildings is doing more to enforce existing time limits.
Yet still, many remain even on city property such as NYCHA buildings.
Patch reporter Matt Troutman contributed to this report.
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