Crews repair water main break in Hoboken, parts of city still closed as repaving begins

After more than two days of work, crews have repaired the 30-inch water main break in Hoboken and are now working on repaving Willow Avenue.
The north side of Willow Avenue is now open to traffic, but the west side between 13th and 15th streets remains closed.
It took crews nearly 12 hours to isolate the break and stop the water from flowing. There was little to no impact on water pressure and quality at that time, but changed later in the day as crews worked to fix the break.
Saturday's water main break was the second water main break in the area within 24 hours. It is unclear if Friday's break impacted the one that happened Saturday.
Those near the area are skeptical of the system in place.
"Get boats," says Ahri Findling, of Jersey City, "Maybe we can just convert all the roads to like a Venice-type canal system and that seems easier."
Water was delivered to people, but as of Sunday morning, Suez said that services were restored. Suez posted a statement on Sunday night, saying due to the size and complexity of the main, repairs will continue on Monday.
Officials say the city recently signed a new contract with Suez Water, allowing for more than $2 million a year to be allocated for proactive water main improvement as there are concerns with the aging mains. Some of the water mains are nearly a century old.
As part of the $33 million project, 15 blocks and 7,000 feet of water mains will be replaced through 2034 with no extra cost to tax payers.
"Finally Hoboken is turning the page," says Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla. "In collaboration with our City Council, we are making active investments in our infrastructure to make sure these things don't happen again in the future."