Clock starts on incinerator removal

Valley Stream’s long-vacant incinerator will be coming down within the next few months, now that the village Board of Trustees approved a demolition contract.

At its Feb. 10 meeting, the board approved a $743,347 contract with Gramercy Group of Wantagh to remove the abandoned building and smokestack at the Arlington Avenue public works facility. According to village officials, the company has 140 days to take down the building.

Gramercy won the bid for abatement and demolition of the building. Before it can be demolished, the company will have to remove asbestos, lead paint and vermin.

The village allocated $1.2 million for the project, a figure based on internal conversations among village officials. Mayor Ed Fare said that the possibility of getting the building removed for less was a pleasant surprise.

There were seven bidders, with five proposals topping $1 million, and the highest approaching $3 million. The lowest bid was $160,000. Fare said that bid was disqualified because it did not include much of the work that needs to be done, and the company failed to post a required bond.

The demolition process is the first phase of a project to modernize garbage disposal in the village. The incinerator, which was built in 1962, has not been used for 35 years. Once it is down, village officials want to replace it with a state-of-the-art facility, and said there are several options.

Currently, sanitation trucks drop the garbage into a compactor adjacent to the building. The trash is then hauled away by Jamaica Ash. Wayne Mastrangelo, the village’s sanitation supervisor, said the system is antiquated and the compactor requires constant repairs. “We just don’t want to put any more good money into a bad system,” he said.

Mastrangelo said he has already met with representatives of Gramercy, who have developed a multi-stage demolition plan. He said that although the compactor abuts the building, it can remain operational during the demolition process.

It is possible, he said, that the part of the building closest to the compactor might have to come down on a Saturday. Otherwise, he said, most of the demolition work would take place during the Sanitation Department’s regular hours. “We will be fully operational the whole time,” he said. “There will be no disturbance of the sanitation pickup to the residents.”

Mastrangelo said that air quality would constantly be monitored throughout the process. Village officials say they want the project to have as little impact as possible on the homes that surround the public works yard on three sides.

The smokestack will be removed from the top down, with a special device that Gramercy has that pushes the structure down in place. Mastrangelo said that process would take a few days, and it is a much better option that using a wrecking ball or implosion. “This is much cleaner, it’s much more efficient and it’s a better system for the residents of the area,” he said.

Gramercy’s past demolition work includes the former home of the Jets and Giants. “If they can take down Giants Stadium,” Fare said, “they can take down our incinerator.”

The company will recycle some of the materials after it demolishes the building, which village officials said helped trim the cost of the project.

Fare said that the village will have to make sure all utilities are disconnected from the building. Mastrangelo added that some electrical work will have to be completed first to ensure that the compactor stays operational.

Overall, village officials say, the removal of the incinerator will be a benefit to nearby residents. Fare noted that based on conversations with real estate brokers, property values for surrounding homes could increase as much as 25 percent. “People don’t want to look out their window and see a smokestack,” he said.

Mastrangelo added that all residents of the village would benefit from the construction of a state-of-the-art garbage facility, as the per-ton rate to dispose of trash is expected to drop. Jamaica Ash has offered a reduction in price, but the village has not yet signed a new contract with the Westbury-based carting company.

Mastrangelo said he is excited about the opportunity to redevelop the site to better meet the needs of village residents. “We want to take this building down as soon as possible,” he said. “This is something that’s been talked about for a number of years.”