Residents of the 400 block of Delancey Avenue gathered Saturday afternoon around a pothole in the eastbound lane to mark its third year, a milestone the city’s public works department described as “consistent with our records.”
The pothole is roughly the width of a manhole cover and the depth of a cereal bowl. It was first reported to the city’s 311 line three Octobers ago by Lorraine Szabo-Whitcomb, 66, who lives across the street and has reported it 47 times since. She keeps a log of the calls in a spiral notebook. She brought a sheet cake.
The Party
About a dozen neighbors attended. Several of them walked around the pothole on the way in, out of habit, though no cars were coming. A child asked whether it would get a present. Szabo-Whitcomb said it already had everything it needed.
A public works spokesperson, Garrick Osterhaus-Bey, said the pothole is now 214th on the department’s repair list, up from 290th a year ago, “which is real progress.” Asked when it would reach first, he said the list does not work like that. Szabo-Whitcomb said she would call again Monday.
A birthday candle was placed in the center of the pothole at 4 p.m. It went out at 4:15, when a delivery van went through.
