Annadale Staten Island Sewer Construction

Annadale Residents To Be Hooked Up To City's Sewer System
October 24, 2007

A few hundred Staten Island homes and businesses are on their way to being a little more connected with the rest of the city – or at least with the part of the city that handles their waste water. Borough Reporter Amanda Farinacci has details on a project that will rid them of one dirty job.

Nearly 40 blocks of homes and businesses in the Annadale neighborhood will say goodbye to antiquated septic systems and connect to the city sewer system for the first time ever, thanks to a $35 million project announced Wednesday.

“New Yorkers whose residences are already connected to sewers do take this convenience for granted, but to anyone who has had to pump out a septic tank, the benefits of a sewer system are immediately clear,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

The project, which actually began this summer, will install larger and more reliable water mains, improved catch basins and enhanced sanitary sewers in a triangular 40 block section of this South Shore community.

For 220 homes and 30 businesses it means an end to septic systems, which can pose health and safety dangers, and an improvement to storm drainage to prevent flooding after heavy rains.

It also means lots of construction, something resident Andrea Gulotta, who recently switched from septic to sewer, says is not a lot of fun.

“It’s a big mess. It’s still a big mess in front of my house, because, like I said, I just got it done,” said Gulotta. “It's just, you know, messy. Chopping up the streets, the sidewalks keep getting cracked, and they keep having to come and repair them.”

The Annadale Merchants Association has a plan to quell the fears of residents and local businesses about the impact of the project and plans to educate the neighborhood by using posters about the timeline and continue its involvement with the city by trying to form a business improvement district.

“It’s a two-year project, so does that mean we're gonna lose customers for two years? I don't think so. I think most people are gonna drive by and see what's really going on, and see it's really not that bad, however the scare is there,” said Frank Arlia of the Annadale Merchants Association.

The businesses and homes will have to pay to hook up to the sewer system and they'll have to pay annual sewer charges, but at least they won't have to deal with the messy and sometimes expensive job of clearing out a septic tank.