A typical day in Newark’s Ironbound neighborhood finds the streets packed with workers, residents, and restaurant owners, taking advantage of the opportunities in a locale teeming with life. But on a day with even slightly harder than usual rain, that life drowns in torrents of stormwater.
“You can’t move. I can’t get past South Street just a few blocks away. They’re building too many houses and not enough sewers,” said Pat Pugliese, co-owner of the Caffè Espresso Italia at the corner of Adams and Malvern streets. “When it rains, we all get scared down here. We need better water flow, and we need help to do it. We may be old-school down here, but something has to change.”
