Overdevelopment, an Example - 640 West 238th Street

   The problem with overdevelopment is that the open green spaces where there was once grass are covered over by cement, and the once beautiful shade trees are cut down by developers who want to build on every inch of the property which they have purchased. That one family home on a decent sized lot is torn down to build an apartment building such as the proposed eight story building for the address of 640 West 238th Street where a one family home once stood. This eight story apartment building will be built to the property line leaving a cement sidewalk as the only space in front of the building where a grass yard once was. As for the apartment building on the Independence Avenue side (the Bonnie House) the A line of that building was built to the property line, which means the windows that once overlooked a one family house will now be smack up against a cement wall. Don't worry the developer of 640 West 238th Street is going to brick up those windows so it will seem as though they never existed. Air conditioners will have to be removed, and there will be no ventilation from the east side anymore. Since the Bonnie house is a coop building the apartments mostly has dropped in value, especially the value of the apartments in the A line of the building. As for being a good neighbor the photos below will show just how little respect the developer of 640 West 238th Street has for the community, as the heavy, large demolition and construction vehicles have ruined the street, with no regard for the island in the middle of the block, placed construction equipment on sidewalks around the corner, blocked the one fire hydrant at the Independence Avenue side of West 238th Street, and how the trucks run up onto the sidewalk or island in the middle because they were just to large for the construction area. While I do not have a photo of a construction truck hitting the fire hydrant there are cracks in the sidewalk, and you can see just how careful workers were after I noticed the cracks. Oh by the way did I forget to say that the developer told the community board that all vehicles would load/unload on site, and that there would be flagmen at both sides when trucks arrived or left the site, see if you can spot them in the photos. 

Above - This driver has the gall to pose on his truck as it sits at the edge of the island that he just went onto.

Below - After my complaints that construction trucks were going onto the island this orange fencing was put up by the developer, but apparently to no avail as you can see its conditionand where this truck is.

Above - Notice this piece of heavy equipment with its large metal cleats.

Below - Notice what those metal cleats and weight of the equipment did to the street and patch after other heavy equipment tore up the street.

Above - A piece of heavy equipment (a back hoe) sits on West 238th Street in front of the fire hydrant.

Below - Another piece of equipment sits by the hydrant, blocking fire department access if there was an emergency. Notice the cracks in the sidewalk around the hydrant.

Above - A smaller piece of construction sits partly on the side walk around the corner on Independence Avenue.

Below This truck comes nowhere near fitting into the construction site, and where are the flag people?

Above - One dump truck sits in front of the hydrant while anothe loads dirt from the site. Flagman anywhere? You can also see some of the windows of the bonnie house that will be bricked over so the view is not of a brick wall.

Below - A truck blocks the entrance to West 238th Street as another is on site, and a flatbed truck is double parked across from it on Independence Avenue to take away the piece of equipment which was partially parked on the sidewalk. Mind you this is right before dismissal of the two schools one block away.

Above and Below - This oversized truck has to go onto the sidewalk of the wrong side of the island narrowly missing the light pole as a child nears. I don't see anyone guiding this truck which is picking up a piece of heavy equipment.

Above - A close up of just how close this truck came to knocking down the light pole.

Below - The heavy piece of construction equipment has to be loaded around the corner on Blackstone Avenue. You can see that this piece of heavy construction equipment is to big for the trailer, and it is a good thing that it did not fall off. Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz who lives just to the left was not home, while this was going on.

Above - A hose was connected to the fire hydrant to clean out the cement trucks that dropped their load for the foundation.

Below - If I didn't complain this is how the street would have been left.

Speaking of the cement poured for the foundation -Why was this 'STOP WORK ORDER' posted for 640 West 238th Street the Monday after a New York City Buildings Department worker took samples of the cement used for the foundation the previous Friday?