School’s construction din frays neighbors’ nerves

Neighbors of the Ethical Culture Fieldston School have complained about construction work going on until 10 p.m. but the Buildings Department said the school has a special variance for late-night work.

It allows the school to carry out construction work from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays, Buildings Department officials said.

But neighbors are not pleased.

“They never put up notices or contact anyone to let us know when they are going to start this. They don’t really seem to care about the inconvenience of it,” said Miguel Alonso, who lived up the street from the Lower School. “It’s been a little annoying.”

For the past few months, local residents could hear workers “moving stuff up and down,” he said, adding: “I think maybe it just depends on the weather but they are usually here on Saturdays.“

Another neighbor, who lives across the street from the school, tried to struck a conciliatory note. The evening construction was an inconvenience but not a huge bother, said the neighbor, Andre, who declined to provide his last name.

“It’s a school and it’s for our children…cut them some slack,” he said.

On weekdays, work usually ends at 3 p.m., but there has been late evening work, which has sometimes gone until 9:30 p.m., he said.

The variance, however, does not allow school to carry out construction work on Sundays or begin before 6 a.m., according to the Buildings Department — and some of the neighbors have accused the school of doing just that.

Wendy, who lives on W. 240th Street, said construction workers were drilling in the area on Nov. 6, a Sunday, at 9 p.m. On other days, Wendy is usually up at 4:30 a.m., walking her dog, and often sees trucks coming in and out of the area, she said.

The school is in the process of renovating and adding more space to its lower division, Kyle Wilkie-Glass, the school’s chief operating officer, said in comments emailed to The Press.

Fieldston has permits for its construction and is trying to work with neighbors to minimize its construction nuisance, Mr. Wilkie-Glass said.

The work is now in its second stage – which involves the addition of restrooms and classrooms on what was previously a flat roof. Phase three, which will take place in summer, will include additional interior work and the roof’s replacement, he said.

“Construction work is scheduled throughout the week and weekend in order to accomplish the project in a manner that is as safe for our students and teachers as possible while instruction is going on,” Mr. Wilkie-Glass said. “Demolition and construction work generally takes places during the day and into the early evening, with several weeks over the summer and fall where work may take place up to 10 p.m. per permits approved by the NYC Building Department.”