A rotting sidewalk shed that had decayed outside the Medical Examiner’s office in Manhattan for 15 years is finally being put to rest.
The mayor’s office announced Wednesday that it has started dismantling the city-owned sidewalk shed outside the office at 520 1st Ave. in Kips Bay. The rotting wooden and metal structure had become an eyesore for the neighborhood and emblematic of the devices’ proliferation at buildings across the city.
Members of the Adams administration and local elected officials declared on Aug. 28 that, at long last, the day had come to take down the shed. It had been the longest-standing sidewalk shed outside a city-woned building.
“I am sorry it took us so long,” Councilmember Keith Powers said with the partially dismantled scraps of metal behind him. “New Yorkers deserve a lot better.”
Initially, the shed was erected outside the Medical Examiner’s office to shield pedestrians from unsafe debris during construction work. However, the framework remained in place far longer than necessary and after repairs had been completed.
Some are not ready to congratulate the city yet, however. Several passing locals who stopped the takedown process commented that the city should be patting themselves on the back for clearing up their own mess while the taxpayers had footed the bill for years.
Department of Buildings Commissioner James Oddo said that he believes the process is an important part of holding itself accountable if it will do the same for properties not under its control
“The city has to walk the walk, and that means our own sheds, that are up with no underlying work being done for years and years, they have to come down. This shed in particular was up for 15 years. There is no reason for any shed in New York City to be up for 15 years,” Oddo said.
The takedown is a part of the ‘Get Sheds Down’ initiative that aims to dismantle hundreds of sheds that have stayed up past the necessary time.
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