nws Bayonne Bridge

Vaughn Bellocchio points to the Bayonne Bridge as the source of debris that has fallen on his business property and cars for years. (Staten Island Advance/Rachel Shapiro)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- While the Port Authority has spent almost four years working to raise the Bayonne Bridge for large ships to pass beneath, people working and living below the bridge say their requests to prevent debris from landing on their houses and cars have fallen on deaf ears.

'MY FEAR IS THEY'RE GONNA KILL SOMEBODY'

Leading the area in complaints is Vaughn Bellocchio, owner of Polishing Pad, an auto body shop located under the bridge, on the corner of Newark Avenue and Richmond Terrace in Port Richmond.

For the past three years, pieces of metal, wood, rocks and more fall off the bridge and onto his property, hitting his building and the newly-repaired cars on his lot, he said.

Glue has dripped onto customers' vehicles, and every day, Bellocchio or his crew sweep the property to remove the small debris that inevitably litters the lot.

A video his son took shows pebbles raining down on the cars for a minute or two.

He sometimes relocates cars to a nearby street, but that's limited to the few cars that can fit.

Bellocchio, a Marine veteran who has owned the shop for 25 years, has asked the Port Authority, with little or no response, to install a net or some other feature to catch things that fall off the bridge.

He has filed numerous claims to get reimbursed for damage.

The Port Authority said nine claims that Bellocchio filed total $90,000 -- there are others that were dismissed and some pending.

Bellocchio said he has sustained much more than the $90,000 in damage and has filed many more claims than the Port Authority says it has on record.

But he has gotten so frustrated with the claims process, which he said takes months, and with debris continuing to fall, he often doesn't file a claim.

One day a few weeks ago he noticed one of the newly fixed cars had a large dent in the hood -- and on the ground next to the car was a large, circular piece of metal.

That was the last straw -- Bellocchio drove his truck onto the closed portion of the bridge and "made a scene ... a citizen's protest, so to speak," he said.

He has been afraid the debris would hurt his business, "Now my fear is they're gonna kill somebody," he said.

Bellocchio produced a notice from the Port Authority informing people in the neighborhood that they should cover their cars for nighttime work on a specific date.

But much of the debris that has fallen has been during the day, without warning, he said.

Shortly before Christmas, a 4-foot piece of metal fell on his building.

"When it hit the roof, it sounded like an explosion," Bellocchio said. "What we have been asking for for years, on deaf ears, is a safety net. They refuse to do it."

He has asked Rep. Daniel Donovan to help, and his staff has been in contact with the Port Authority about installing a net.

"An on-time and on-budget project is of course everybody's goal, but the Port Authority should provide reasonable accommodation for homes and businesses damaged by their work," Donovan said. "I have yet to hear a good reason why the Port Authority can't offer temporary netting or other protective measures to reduce the risk to local residents and businesses. It's incumbent on contractors to provide adequate protection against falling debris, and the Port Authority needs to take steps to do so."

'GARBAGE IS FALLING FROM THE BRIDGE'

Manuel Cruz, a resident several doors down from Polishing Pad on Newark Avenue, said his issue is with smaller particles.

"Constant dust falls everywhere on the house and the car," giving rise to breathing issues for his asthmatic son.

"There's dust inside the house constantly" in the warm weather, so they started keeping the windows closed, he said.

The Advance visited the neighborhood and saw a coat of dust on some of the houses.

The Port Authority gave residents car covers, but they blow off easily in the wind.

"I wash my car and hours later it's dirty again," Cruz said.

Like with Bellocchio's clients' cars, glue dripped from the bridge onto his car.

He said he filed a claim with the Port Authority but never heard back. The agency said they never received a claim.

"When it fell on your car, you couldn't just wipe it," he said.

The Port Authority also makes car wash vouchers available but to get the vouchers "is a process," Cruz said.

The Port Authority said residents can get vouchers from the office at 209 John St. after showing their driver's license for proof of residency.

Last year, there was a meeting about the bridge debris and "we all complained about it and it fell onto deaf ears," Cruz said. "I don't have the time to be wasting and fighting about stuff like that."

Mark Garcia also lives on Newark Avenue and has seen small paint chips and other light debris on his property.

He hasn't put in a claim for anything

"Garbage is falling from the bridge," he said, and the Port Authority comes by every so often and cleans it up.

PORT AUTHORITY NOTIFIES NEIGHBORHOOD

The Port Authority hasn't directly addressed Bellocchio's or the Advance's questions about installing a large net, but spokesman Neal Buccino said, "The project's comprehensive safety plan includes tethering tools and materials on the construction site, to prevent them from falling. When high winds are expected or are occurring, workers conduct routine safety walks to remove or tie down any materials on the bridge. At various times, for specific types of work, the project has used tarps and/or netting to catch falling materials. Project personnel include spotters to ensure safety underneath areas where work is being performed. The spotters will ensure no one is present in the controlled access zones beneath the work areas and will make sure all work is halted if any items fall from the construction site. The contractor has also terminated and/or otherwise disciplined employees following safety incidents."

Buccino said the Port Authority has paid about $10 million for removing paint chips and other debris, car washes, exterior home power washes, pool cleaning and pool water testing, temporary hotel stays, minor construction-related repairs, and reimbursement for window replacement and air conditioning purchases.

Addressing the dust that coats houses in the area, Buccino said, "Levels of dust and other materials are consistently found to be within federal, state and local requirements."

He said Port Authority staff regularly go door-to-door to speak with residents and leave flyers on cars and homes about upcoming construction work that might affect them, including project changes that might affect traffic or parking.

As for the lengthy claims process that Bellocchio cites, Buccino said, "Generally speaking, time between the notification to resolution of a property damage claim is approximately 33 days. A third-party administrator will initiate an investigation the same day the claim is received and, if it is determined that the construction project caused the damage, we will work with the resident on a settlement amount."

While part of the new bridge opened to vehicles last month, the entire project is expected to be completed in 2019.

The story has been updated to reflect new claims figures provided by the Port Authority.