Photo credit: Friends and Residents go Greater Gowanus
We just heard from a reader that there was quite a bit of flooding near the Third Street Bridge on this rainy afternoon. This was confirmed by Friends and Residents of Greater Gowanus (FROGG) which posted the photos above on its Facebook Page. Police had to actually close the street and tell everyone to turn around at about 2:30pm. They are now letting cars through again.
FROGG, whose mission it is to "work towards an eco-safe and healthy Gowanus Canal" writes :
"There has always been ponding on the south side of 3rd Street here, and cars would take the north side of the street to pass through, but since the large 700 unit Lightstone development has opened, the street drain just up the hill at 3rd & Bond fails to drain. Water now stands a good foot deep over that street drain when it rains preventing any drainage at this location which is now ponding like never before.
Clearly the area now needs new (or additional) infastructure to support new development, unfortunately, the tax payers will have to cover on that as the developers have been granted tax brakes that extend for more than 25 years."
It is interesting to note that Third Street is still the designated Hurricane evacuation route for people in Carroll Gardens and Red Hook, and for the people who live in Lightstone's 365 Bond Street, who will need to follow mandatory evacuation orders during a hurricane. (Read about the evacuation route here)
Today's rain was steady, but not actually torrential, so one can imagine what it is like during a heavy downpour or a Hurricane like Sandy.
Sun is going down now and the water is still covering the sidewalks, drivers might not be aware of the depth of the water. Pedestrians can now cross on the north side of the street, but would be better off using the Carroll Bridge.
ReplyDeleteAny word if there is flooding at 365 Bond?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the warning, Anon 4:22.
ReplyDeleteTo Anon 4:55, that is an interesting question.
This is not climate change, this is very poor planning. Thank you M. DeBlasio and all those dear CB6 folks that voted up the Bond Street rezoning with no real infrastructure to accommodate impacts in the surrounding area.
ReplyDeletewonder if anybody bothered to call the city to perhaps come and clean out the catch basins?
ReplyDelete6:22 adding inevitable further effects of climate change it is very poor, if not criminal, planning to build dense residentially in areas that are already flood zones.
ReplyDeleteThere's been a drainage problem at the corner of Third and Bond (north side) for as long as I've lived here, years before 365 Bond.
ReplyDelete"now ponding like never before" is completely false as that condition has occurred for 50 years during heavy rain.
ReplyDeleteThe flooding at 3rd street bridge during heavy rain can be solved with a drain to Gowanus from Third street or bioswales adjacent to the bridge but instead, our Community Board decided to build a sponge park at 2nd St.
No flooding occurred next to the new Lightstone development on 2nd St.