Former Brooklyn Rapid Transit Powerhouse

Powerhouse is a 2.5-acre site located on the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn, New York. The Site was enrolled in the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) with major contaminants including petroleum, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), metals, and asbestos. The Brooklyn Rapid Transit Power Station was constructed at the Site in 1903 and supplied electricity to the newly consolidated local steam railroad system until it was decommissioned in the 1950s. The Site was acquired by the nonprofit Powerhouse Environmental Arts Foundation who developed the Site into a purpose-built facility that hosts art and fabrication professionals. The redevelopment included restoring the Site’s existing Turbine Hall building and the reconstruction of the 113-year-old Boiler House in the Romanesque Revival style. The redevelopment includes exhibition space and facilities for fabrication in wood, metal, ceramics, textiles, and printmaking, along with event and gallery space.

Roux took over the remediation at the Site in September 2015 from the previous consultant. Once hired, Roux’s primary job was to make sure that the Site received its Certificate of Completion (COC) by December 21, 2017 (the sunset date for all projects enrolled in BCP Version 1). Site work included supplemental site-wide soil investigation, PCB hot spot remediation, regrading, and soil disposal, followed by capping and investigation of several historical structures associated with former operations. After the last remedial excavations were performed at the Site in September 2017, Roux received the Track 4 COC on December 27, 2017 with the commitment to perform additional interior remediation of the existing structure and below-grade tunnels as part of redevelopment.

As part of the interior remediation work, Roux coordinated the disposal of asbestos-containing building materials (ACBMs), removal of petroleum and PCB-impacted building materials, and removal of former contaminated below-ground tunnels from the existing building. Since receipt of the COC, both remediation and redevelopment work has continued to satisfy the requirements of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Order on Consent for the Site and the NYSDEC-approved Site Management Plan. Since 2017, a new steel pile bulkhead was installed along the Gowanus Canal and final remediation was performed in the former sump structures and lateral discharge tunnels associated with historic usage of the Turbine Hall and Boiler House. Remediation at the Site is complete, and the facility is operational. Roux continues to perform long-term monitoring of groundwater and indoor air quality to ensure the safety of the building's artists and visitors.

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