Council Member Justin Brannan announced Monday that he has secured $51 million in capital funding to reconstruct and modernize segments of the sewerage system in parts of Dyker Heights that often experience backflow flooding when it rains.
Brannan said the new project includes upgrades to the system centered around 10th Avenue south of 77th Street, where for years locals have had to pump water out of their basements when heavy rainfall caused contaminated water to incorrectly flow through sewer pipes. The job builds on a construction project the NYC Department of Environmental Protection implemented over 20 years ago.
“My hard working neighbors in Dyker Heights deserve to have basements that don’t flood every other time it rains,” Brannan said in a statement. “These homeowners pay their property taxes just like everybody else – they actually pay a higher effective rate than most other neighborhoods. They have spent too many late nights and family holidays pumping raw sewage down in their basements.”
According to Brad Hennessy, a homeowner in Dyker Heights, a rainy forecast means constant flood watch for him and his neighbors. He said when the area flooded last year, he had to stand outside his home with buckets to ensure his basement didn’t flood — an issue he claims is caused by faulty sewer systems.
“It’s an archaic system,” he told Brooklyn Paper. “Stormwater shouldn’t cause flooding. We pay taxes but we’re not getting the services. It’s a big health hazard, that’s my biggest concern.”
Hennessy, who has owned a home in the area for over a decade, said the issue of backflow flooding has only gotten worse with time. After witnessing some older neighbors struggle to keep their basements flood free, he took his concerns to elected officials and pleaded for a new sewer model that would bring the locals peace of mind.
“It’s not going away whether people want to believe it or not,” he said. “I don’t want…
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