September 30, 2015

Contact:

deppressoffice@dep.nyc.gov, (718) 595-6600

Guided Tours and Limited Access Recreation at Jerome Park Reservoir Postponed due to the Threat of Inclement Weather 

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) today announced that due to the potential for inclement weather this weekend, the special guided tours and limited access recreation planned at Jerome Park Reservoir have been postponed until the weekend of November 14th and 15th. As was originally planned, there will be two ticketed tours on each day, followed by a non-ticketed opportunity for the public to walk or jog around the 2-mile perimeter of the Reservoir. Entry will be through a Gate House located on the west side of Goulden Avenue, just south of 205th Street and phones, bags and cameras will not be permitted on the Reservoir grounds. There will be an opportunity to check phones, but visitors should not bring bags or cameras. All individuals who had registered for the tours scheduled for October 3rd and 4th will be contacted by DEP and given the first opportunity for tickets to the November 14th and 15th tours. To the extent any tickets remain after that, DEP will make them available on a first-come, first-served basis. More information will be made available about any remaining tickets on the DEP website and Facebook page. 

Saturday, November 14th:

Guided Tours (tickets required)

10:00am – 11:00am

11:00am – 12:00pm

Limited Access Recreation (tickets not required)

12:30pm – 2:30pm

Sunday, November 15th:

Guided Tours (tickets required)

10:00am – 11:00am

11:00am – 12:00pm

Limited Access Recreation (tickets not required)

12:30pm – 2:30pm 

This special access to the Reservoir grounds is the result of a continuing dialogue between DEP, elected officials and the community. The plans were determined by DEP in consultation with the members of a task force, including Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, NYS Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz, NYC Council Member Andrew Cohen, Chairman of Community Board 12 Father Richard Gorman, Chairman of Community Board 8 Daniel Padernacht and a representative of the community, Gary Axelbank.

In addition to the guided tours and limited access recreation, this fall DEP will partner with schools located in the vicinity of the Reservoir to provide a pilot education program on New York City’s drinking water system. This will include teacher professional development, classroom visits and guided tours of the Reservoir grounds.

Jerome Park Reservoir is roughly 93-acres in size, has the capacity to hold up to 773 million gallons of water, and is located in the northwest Bronx. It receives water from the City’s Croton Watershed, located in Westchester and Putnam Counties, and is the last stop for the water before it enters the Croton Water Filtration Plant and goes into the City’s distribution system.

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing more than one billion gallons of high quality water each day to more than 9 million New Yorkers. This includes more than 70 upstate communities and institutions in Ulster, Orange, Putnam and Westchester counties who consume an average of 110 million total gallons of drinking water daily from New York City’s water supply system. This water comes from the Catskill, Delaware, and Croton watersheds that extend more than 125 miles from the City, and the system comprises 19 reservoirs, three controlled lakes, and numerous tunnels and aqueducts. DEP has nearly 6,000 employees, including almost 1,000 scientists, engineers, surveyors, watershed maintainers and other professionals in the upstate watershed. In addition to its $70 million payroll and $157 million in annual taxes paid in upstate counties, DEP has invested more than $1.7 billion in watershed protection programs—including partnership organizations such as the Catskill Watershed Corporation and the Watershed Agricultural Council—that support sustainable farming practices, environmentally sensitive economic development, and local economic opportunity. In addition, DEP has a robust capital program with nearly $14 billion in investments planned over the next 10 years that will create up to 3,000 construction-related jobs per year. For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.