ACCORDING TO JIM / STREET CUTS

In a previous effort, a blog post called “Road Warriors,” I catalogued the long, strange trip that led to Pave, Baby, Pave, our successful effort to increase the number of lane miles re-surfaced in our borough.  It was a story outlining more than a decade of mismanagement, as the previous occupant of the office of the Mayor thumbed his nose at basic physics and math, eschewed re-surfacing, and tried to band-aid us with pothole “repair.” 
​Our roads crumbled, like the recycled asphalt product they were mended with, into third world status.

But if Pave, Baby, Pave was a movie, it would have a pretty frightening prequel – perhaps we might call it St​reet Cuts: The Rise and Fall of Our Roads.  And street cuts, like some gruesome Walking Dead zombie, has risen yet again and stalks us relentlessly.

Because it was street cuts that began our decent into driving hell.  “Street cuts” is the name we give to the patch job done in the wake of underground work performed by developers, plumbing contractors, gas and electric utilities, cable operators and other entities that wish to, or need to, work below our streets.

As you can imagine, in the loosey-goosey era of over-development that existed before the Growth Management Task Force, and with townhome development exploding, our streets were constantly under the assault of jackhammers and backhoes.  Of course, those who broke it were obligated to fix it – and there were rules governing how, rules that the Department of Buildings, who issued the Building Permits and Certificates of Occupancy, were duty-bound to enforce.

The problem was, however, that the DOB had options.  
​They could insist that the repair be made according to code – half the width of the street plus five feet.
​Or they could, if they wished, accept less than that.  
And, if they saw fit, they could waive the requirement altogether.

So before Mayor Bloomberg decided to simply avoid investing in our roads, we were beset by builders and developers who, seemingly at every turn, were digging up our streets and re-paving in the most haphazard and inconsistent way – and they were not held accountable.  This was the problem then: builders, developers and agencies were exploding streets before the ticking time bomb of non-investment ever had a chance to.  Then came a series of winters about which I think Siberian natives might have nightmares, and those of you who drive here don’t need to be reminded of the results: pothole purgatory.

Pave, Baby, Pave gave us some very much-needed relief, and still continues to do so as we finally make headway paying back the re-surfacing debt Bloomberg saddled us with.  But with apologies to our forefathers, the watchwords of the day now must be: 

  “eternal vigilance is the price 
                                                 of a smooth ride.”

I don’t think many folks know this rule about freshly paved streets,
​simply because you’ve seen very little evidence that the rule is ever followed:

Let me stress this existing rule:
​No street opening activity shall be allowed, except for emergency work or as authorized by the Commissioner,
​in a protected street for a period of five years.

The street cut issue in 10 seconds. Look for the new cuts, failed cuts. See them. Feel them. We have to do better. pic.twitter.com/BgjBzOIqdH

— Jimmy Oddo (@HeyNowJO) August 23, 2016

Just so we're clear on this: The term "protected street" means a street which has been resurfaced or reconstructed within five years prior to the date of application for a permit.
Like so many other rules, this one is broken routinely.  There are reasonable exceptions, of course, as in the case of unforeseeable emergencies, but otherwise, anyone who wishes to cut into a protected street  “must demonstrate that the need for the work could not have reasonably been anticipated prior to or during such construction.”
It is the success of Pave, Baby, Pave that resurrects this issue from its oft-forgotten past.  With so many lane-miles having been re-paved recently, and through our strenuous efforts many more to come in the upcoming years, street cuts that would have been considered a minor annoyance in the past now sting us like a collective slap in the face.  We, all of us, who have endured such terrible road conditions for so many years, do we not deserve a brief respite to enjoy our freshly-paved asphalt streets, unmarked and smooth as a bobsled run?

Councilman Matteo and I have announced a plan – a legislative plan – to if not completely rectify, at least severely limit the degradation of protected streets. This plan will include a notification requirement so that we don’t learn about plans to cut into protected streets after the fact; institute a new curb-to-curb standard so when emergencies on protected streets do occur, the best possible fix is made; and also require curb-to-curb resurfacing in those instances on all streets – protected an unprotected – where multiple buildings are constructed next to each other and multiple cuts made.

Update, June 22, 2017:
I recently participated in a meeting at City Hall attended by Deputy Mayor Shorris’ Chief-of-Staff, DOT, DDC, Con Ed, and National Grid officials, in order to further discuss the issue of street cuts. I discussed our borough’s concern, some potential solutions and conveyed my apprehension about the universe of emergency permits issued by DOT on protected streets, which are those that have been resurfaced in the last 5 years.

DOT, for their part, outlined their belief that re-paving one-half the width of the street + five additional feet (our suggested solution) in lieu of trench restorations, would not effectively address concerns related to sinking trenches and potential potholes. They believe that once the surface is disrupted and the macadam is no longer functioning as one monolithic unit, there is a higher probability that the restored area will fail. The agency also stated that most of the trench failures are due to improper backfilling procedures and the lack of a concrete base. To address these concerns DOT has implemented the following:

• Rule changes for more durable restoration
• Restoration-in-kind for street cuts including restoration of concrete base
• Enforcement of materials in backfill
• Expanded DOT inspection process including monitoring of work in progress
• Expanded testing after construction including core tests for acceptable restoration

When you fight a battle and win but fail to defend the ground you’ve gained, you run the risk of giving it right back again.  When your opponent is a plethora of city agencies and utilities, vigilance must be kicked up to a higher plane – a much higher plane.  These cuts – some big, some small, are all damaging to the long term health of the street, not to mention the suspension system of your car.

We are determined to protect the investment made in our roads as part of #pavebabypave. The current status quo is not working. This nearly two decade quest continues…