BY COLIN MIXSON
Councilmember Ben Kallos’s legislation mandating sidewalk sheds be removed within six months of going up would be a boon to the residents of Lower Manhattan, who share their narrow sidewalks with many of the longest-lived construction sheds in the city. Here’s a list of the top three offenders, which have stood for years with nary a brick laid to justify their existence.
The nine-year-old sidewalk shed on John St. is home to a chronic homeless encampment, where vagrants set up furniture and cardboard shanties beneath the relative sanctuary the shed provides.
45 John St.
The construction shed at 45 John St. between Nassau and Dutch Sts. has darkened the sidewalk beneath it for going on nine years. The scaffolding was erected in 2007 to accommodate renovations undertaken by a Delaware-based entity, 45 John Street LLC, but construction ground to halt amid the 2008 financial crisis, and the building went untouched by hammer or nail for years as litigation dragged on between the developer and its German lender. During that time, the shed became a go-to refuge for local indigents, who were known to erect makeshift shanty dwellings there and advertised the sale of lewd acts for cash, according to locals.
The scaffolding at 33 Gold St. has been clogging the sidewalk for more than a decade.
33 Gold St.
The shed over the narrow sidewalk around 33 Gold St. has existed for well over a decade. City records show the property owner first applied for the shed in the halcyon days of 1998, and long-time Fidi resident Sarah El-Batanouny, who first moved to the area in 2005, can’t remember a time when the scaffolding there hasn’t loomed overhead. Making matters worse, the narrow sidewalk beneath the scaffolding is often choked with massive piles of garbage, forcing passersby to spill into the street for lack of room. Ironically, 33 Gold St. was recently landmarked, meaning any remaining work may take even longer due to the landmark commission’s stringent permitting process
The scaffolding around 20 Exchange Pl. has been up for at least a decade, but perhaps nearly 20 years.
20 Exchange Pl.
There’s not much to say about the sidewalk shed wrapped around 20 Exchange Pl., except that it’s been around practically forever. According to Financial District Neighborhood Association President Patrick Kennell, the renovation project that necessitated its construction kicked off around a decade ago, although city records show sidewalk shed permit applications going back to 1997. When, if ever, the project will be finished is anyone’s guess.
