ROCKAWAY BEACH — The new multimillion dollar bathrooms and lifeguard shacks along city beaches that were rusted and held together with duct tape in places will undergo a deep clean — and additional construction work — when the beach season is over, according to the Department of Design and Construction.
Last week, DNAinfo New York first reported some of the shacks along Rockaway Beach had rust on the structures and doors, and duct tape was used to hold together railings and a wheelchair ramp at at least one shack.
On Friday, the department sent out a video showing a worker cleaning a portion of one of the stainless steel units by hand with a Clorox wipe and abrasive sponge.
The department said it proved that dirt, not rust, was stuck to the exterior of the 35 units, which were installed in the wake of Hurricane Sandy at a cost of $105 million, or about $3 million each.
The temporary parts, such as windows and doors, will be fixed after the summer, according to the agency, and permanent ramps and railings were also expected to be installed.
It was not clear how much the cleaning and repairs would cost and who would be responsible for the work. It was also unclear how the cleaning would be done.
Lifeguards told DNAinfo that windows for some of the units were already leaking.
“I look at it now and I say, 'Is this going to last the winter?'” said one lifeguard assigned to Far Rockaway, who asked not to be identified.
A spokesman for the DDC said Friday the agency will resume work on the structures after Labor Day, and the shacks should be completely finished by the end of the year.
The temporary parts were installed in an effort to expedite the installation of these structures that were "essential" to the opening of the beach, the spokesman said.
However, the majority of the structures, on Rockaway, Staten Island and Coney Island, were not ready in time for the beach opening.
