New York City is rich with history. And a lot of its history still stands among its residents and visitors in the form of landmark buildings and historical districts.
New Yorkers are passionate about protecting these landmarks. They want to ensure that these buildings and areas are still standing for years to come so future generations can learn from them and enjoy them.
While New Yorkers can’t control natural elements like weather emergencies from harming these NYC landmarks, they can take steps to protect them from manmade factors that could damage these buildings. One such factor is construction activity.
To help protect these properties, the city established the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) which in turn enacted critical guidelines to ensure nearby construction does not damage these buildings.
In the following article, we’ll discuss the origins of the LPC, highlight some of its policies for protecting the city’s landmarks, and highlight some of the ways Saltus’ construction monitoring plays a helping hand in safeguarding these structures.
What is the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC)?
Established in 1965, the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is a local government agency tasked with two major responsibilities:
- Identify and designate the city’s buildings and districts that it deems historically and culturally significant.
- Protecting these landmark properties and areas from damage through policies.
Since its formation, the LPC has played an important role in saving many of these historic properties from demolition. To date, the LPC has classified over 35,000 properties as landmarks. Through their efforts, the LPC has helped the city maintain the unique character of its many historic buildings and neighborhoods.
Since many of these buildings and structures are located in residential areas, the task of keeping them safe from harm is daunting – especially when you consider the amount of construction that occurs in the city.
Realizing the negative impacts that the vibrations, noise, excavation and demolition activities associated with construction projects can have on these landmarks, the LPC along with other local and state agencies such as the New York City Department of Buildings (NYCDOB) and the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) enacted various policies and codes to keep these buildings safe – without deterring NYC’s crucial construction industry.
Many of these policies call for firms to conduct pre- and post-construction surveying and ongoing construction monitoring during the entire process.
That’s where Saltus Construction Monitoring Services can help.
Using Construction Monitoring Services To Protect NYC Landmarks
Since 2008, Saltus and its team of seasoned professionals has provided first-rate monitoring services to help ensure that the vibrations and noises produced by construction activities do not damage the structural integrity of nearby buildings, including historical and cultural landmarks.
Using state-of-the-art specialized equipment, our team can provide a variety of construction monitoring services such as:
- Pre- and Post-Construction Existing Conditions Documentation
- Crack Gauge Monitoring
- Vibration Monitoring
- Optical Monitoring
- Tilt Monitoring
- Noise Level Monitoring
Using these and other critical assessments, Saltus helps minimize the impact construction projects may have on nearby landmarks.
How Existing Conditions Documentation and Crack Gauge Monitoring Help Protect Landmarks
Before construction begins, it’s important for the firms to know the extent of any existing damage to the landmark properties identified in their zone.
Saltus provides precise documentation records, in which our team can inspect the landmark building and structures to identify and record any existing damage via written reports and photographs. Our team will pinpoint areas of concern (such as foundation cracks) and install crack gauges.
Once construction begins, the gauges are monitored to ensure that none of the activities are causing the cracks to grow or expand. If changes are identified, the construction team can quickly stop work and take corrective action to protect the integrity of the landmark.
After the construction projects ends, our team uninstalls the monitoring equipment and inspects the landmark properties once more to ensure no damage has resulted from the project.
Upon conclusion of the inspection, our teams produced a final report with all documentation and photographic evidence. The firm can use this information to protect themselves from any potential liability.
How Vibration Monitoring Protects Landmarks
Vibrations caused by demolition, excavation, or any construction activity that exceed the threshold established by the Technical Policy and Procedure Notice #10/88 (TPPN 10/88) has the potential to significantly and irreparably damage the structural integrity of landmarks without the construction zone.
Using either automated or operator-controlled seismographic equipment, Saltus can monitor the construction site and report any vibration spikes that may impact the neighboring landmarks. With this information at hand, the construction team can take immediate action to halt all activities until they can resume without incident.
How Optical Monitoring Protects Landmarks
Another concern associated with vibrations caused by underpinning, excavating, and other activities associated with foundation construction is that they may cause lateral and horizontal movements in nearby landmark buildings and structures.
If these movements are significant, they could cause irreparable harm to the landmarks – and even put the safety of the community at risk.
Saltus can optically monitor any and all movements in these nearby landmarks either through the use of Manned Total Stations that require an on-site technician to establish benchmarks to record and report any significant movements or Automated Motorized Total Stations (AMTS) which provide continuous monitoring and real-time alerts without the need of a technician.
How Noise Level Monitoring Protects Landmarks
As excessive noise levels caused by construction has the potential to affect landmark properties, firms can employ Saltus’ noise level monitoring services noise level monitoring services to assist with their noise mitigation plans.
With our advanced monitoring equipment, Saltus can track and record noise levels. In the event that construction-related noise exceeds the established thresholds, the equipment alerts the team so construction work can halt until the noise concern is resolved and no longer impacts the landmarks and area buildings.
Additionally, using the data recorded by the monitoring equipment, the construction firms can safeguard themselves from fines from any potential noise violation investigations.
Help Preserve Our Landmarks With Construction Monitoring
As you can see, the LPC and other agencies play a vital role in protecting NYC’s cultural and historical landmarks by establishing guidelines for all nearby construction projects.
Saltus Construction Monitoring Services helps firms adhere to these policies and codes so they can reduce work delays, avoid fines, and, above all, ensure that their activities do not cause any damage to these beloved landmarks.
If you’re slated to begin construction in an area with landmark properties, contact us today!