It was a sleepless night for some Lower East Side residents living near Essex Crossing. Work crews assigned to the huge development project were on the job overnight, pouring concrete for a 25-story tower under construction at 180 Broome St. The noise disturbed a number of tenants at the Grand Street Guild apartments.
Daisy Paez, a local district leader who lives in the complex, got her frustrations out on Twitter and in an email blast to Community Board 3, local elected officials and the 7th Precinct:
Did you get a good nights sleep? Here on Grand Street on the LES the residents DID NOT! UNDER CONSTRUCTION ALL NIGHT!! THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE! ITS BEING INCONSIDERATE @CB3Man@LoDownNY@gregmocker@galeabrewer@CM_MargaretChin@yuhline@GrandStreetDems@lowereastnycpic.twitter.com/0HD22JxCzx
— Daisy Paez (@DaisyPaezLES) May 23, 2018
As it turns out, last night’s construction was approved by the city. The Department of Transportation prefers to schedule these types of activities overnight, when there’s less traffic trying to navigate local streets [congestion on the blocks around Essex Crossing is a continuing and well-documented problem].
General information about the concrete pour was included in Essex Crossing’s weekly email update. Delancey Street Associates, the group building Essex Crossing, did notify local tenant associations and, in some cases, management reps at surrounding buildings. Unfortunately, the information did not trickle down to most residents.
The noisiest work at 180 Broome (known as Site 4) will be continuing for several more weeks. Additional concrete pours are planned, including one in the next week (no exact day/time available as of this writing). Work will also begin soon on the last Essex Crossing site below Delancey Street (Site 3), so late night noise will be a fact of life for some time to come.
If you have a concern about construction noise, your best bet is to call 311. You can also email Community Board 3.
