Construction barrels line Riverside Drive West at the viaduct rehabilitation site.
Community Board 12-Manhattan (CB12M) today filed a reply in support of its motion for leave to submit an amicus curiae brief in Judlau Contracting, Inc. v. The City of New York and NYC Department of Transportation (Index No. 653893/2025), the contract dispute over the long-delayed rehabilitation of the Riverside Drive Viaduct in Washington Heights.
The project’s original substantial completion date was June 27, 2022. That date has been extended multiple times, and work has only recently resumed while the parties move into discovery. A preliminary conference is scheduled for November 4, 2026.
Photo: Anthony Viola
CB12M takes no position on the contract claims or on who is liable for the delay. Its proposed brief asks the Court to consider the effect of continued delay on residents’ safety, mobility, and daily life when exercising its case-management authority, including its discretion over scheduling, expedited discovery, and, where appropriate, trial preference.
In its reply, CB12M notes that the plaintiff itself says it “shares the frustration” of the community and is sympathetic to the impact on residents. CB12M argues that the parties, who are focused on responsibility and damages, are not placing the community’s perspective before the Court, and that Judlau does not represent neighborhood residents. The Board also says its limited filing would not make it a party, would not expand discovery, and would not disrupt the November 4 conference.
Photo: Anthony Viola
“For years, our neighbors have lived with the consequences of this delay. We are asking the Court to hear from the community as it decides how this case will move forward,” said Anthony Viola, Chairperson of CB12M.
CB12M is the local community board for Washington Heights and Inwood, charged under the City Charter with addressing and advocating for community concerns. The Board is represented by Paul Stewart-Stand, Esq. The motion is pending before the Hon. Emily Morales-Minerva, A.J.S.C., New York County Supreme Court.
The reply is available on the New York e-Courts website.