If you live anywhere near Public School 32, the Samuel Mills Sprole School at 317 Hoyt Street between Union and President Streets in Carroll Gardens/ Gowanus, you will have no doubt heard the loud pounding noises coming from the construction site behind the school these last few days.
The construction relates to the expansion of P.S.32 with a new three-story addition directly behind the current 1950's area structure. Designed by Edelman Sultan Knox Wood/ Architects, the addition will provide the school with approximately 200 additional seats and replaces the trailers that had being used for the lower grades at the back of the schoolyard.
The new building will house a large dining area, administrative offices, as well as pre-k and kindergarten on its first floor. Occupancy of this new wing is slated for September 2020.
In an effort to inform you of upcoming construction activity, please note:
Pile delivery began today and production piling will begin shortly.
Baring unforseens and weather permitting, production piling will continue for 2-3 months.
Please be reminded that monitoring of the vibration around the school will take place. Piling will be suspended if the vibration is above allowed levels.
The SCA apologizes for any disruption to the community and thanks you for your patience."
Construction began with the demolition of the trailers this fall. Currently, steel piles are being driven into the ground on the site of the new building. The piles are needed to stabilize a structure of this size, and are most probably an indication of the poor soil in the area. The noise from the pile driving has been reverberating all the way to Smith Street in Carroll Gardens and across the Gowanus Canal in Gowanus.
In March 2017, the New York City School Construction Authority and Councilman Brad Lander held a joint public meeting meant to give neighbors of the school a chance to address their concerns regarding the construction. A similar meeting was held with parents of students.
At the meeting, Councilman Lander stated: "It is an indisputable fact that we need more school seats in District 15," he told local residents. "It is also an indisputable fact that it is a headache living near a construction site."
Yvette Knight, the Project Support Manager for SCA, assured local residents that her agency has managed many projects like this and "is very experienced in doing this kind of work with kids in the building." However, she added, "I am not going to sugar coat this. Please do not expect that there will be no noise."
In March 2017, the New York City School Construction Authority and Councilman Brad Lander held a joint public meeting meant to give neighbors of the school a chance to address their concerns regarding the construction. A similar meeting was held with parents of students.
At the meeting, Councilman Lander stated: "It is an indisputable fact that we need more school seats in District 15," he told local residents. "It is also an indisputable fact that it is a headache living near a construction site."
Yvette Knight, the Project Support Manager for SCA, assured local residents that her agency has managed many projects like this and "is very experienced in doing this kind of work with kids in the building." However, she added, "I am not going to sugar coat this. Please do not expect that there will be no noise."
Carroll Gardens and Gowanus residents are used to construction noise by now, as the community has endured its fair share in the past ten years. However, no one mentioned at the meeting the need for all the piles that would need to be hammered into the ground during school hours, no less.
Take a look at the videos above, filmed yesterday at about 11:30 am, while kids were trying to learn inside their classrooms just feet away. The sound was deafening and one wonders what kind of learning can take place under these conditions.
On February 9, 2018, Yvette Knight sent out the following email to local residents:
"Dear K32 neighbors:In an effort to inform you of upcoming construction activity, please note:
Pile delivery began today and production piling will begin shortly.
Baring unforseens and weather permitting, production piling will continue for 2-3 months.
Please be reminded that monitoring of the vibration around the school will take place. Piling will be suspended if the vibration is above allowed levels.
The SCA apologizes for any disruption to the community and thanks you for your patience."
Another 2 to 3 months of that noise? Really? That brings us almost to the end of the school year.
There are ways to reduce the sound associated with the installation of piles. For example, they could be screwed into the ground, instead of hammered. The use of special sound-deadening apparatus, commonly called a 'noise shroud', would also make a difference.
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As we all know by now, the area around the Gowanus Canal was once marshland, which was filled in to create more land in the 1800s. Any larger building going up in the area near the canal needs to be supported by steal piles. (Remember the more than 1,200 piles that were needed for the recently completed Lightstone Group's buildings at 363-365 Bond Street?)
There are ways to reduce the sound associated with the installation of piles. For example, they could be screwed into the ground, instead of hammered. The use of special sound-deadening apparatus, commonly called a 'noise shroud', would also make a difference.
Are you are parent, teacher or student at P.S. 32? Are you a nearby resident? What has the noise been like for you? We would love to hear from you.
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