Heartbreak along Route 9W: Congers auto shops close to failure as pipeline work blocks them from customers
"I've already had to lay off people," Frank Zaccaro, owner of FZ Perfection Autobody and Collision, said. "Our business is down by 45 or 50%. I don't know how much longer we can survive like this."
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Some Rockland auto shop owners said their businesses are on the brink of failure because their shops are buried in a pipeline construction, and revenue is plummeting.
News 12 has been following the effects of the Champlain Hudson Power Express on businesses in Stony Point, Haverstraw, and now the hamlet of Congers.
Frank Zaccaro, owner of FZ Perfection Autobody and Collision on Route 9W said Wednesday he had to borrow $150,000 to make up for losses due to construction of the CHPE hydropower pipeline, commissioned by the State of New York.
The shop has been taking in about ten cars a month; that number should be 35.
"I've already had to lay off people," Zaccaro said. "Our business is down by 45 or 50%. I don't know how much longer we can survive like this."
Gas line work to accommodate the pipeline construction along Route 9W started in May causing daily road closures.
There are 10 auto-related businesses in the exact location of the gas line work.
The business owners tend to get along, refer customers to one another, and have enjoyed decade of success together.
Now they are suffering together.
The Congers Auto Spa's car wash is receiving half the cars it received last October.
It stays closed some days because equipment is blocking access to it.
"It was just too difficult to operate," owner Mike Tracey said. "It was a nice sunny day, but there was nothing we could do."
Auto repair shop owner Vinney Curran said that for decades the shops on this stretch of Route 9W managed well during previous projects on the thoroughfare until this past summer.
"I've been in this location 35 years," Curran said. "Never in 35 years have I seen such a mess."
Businesses along the pipeline route in Haverstraw and Stony Point have been organizing with their local officials to pressure CHPE project leaders to work more quickly and pay millions into an emergency fund to cover lost revenue from 100 businesses.
The auto shop owners are banding together and plan to launch a similar campaign.
A CHPE spokesperson said Wednesday the gas line work is expected to be completed in November.
Then road repair and cleanup begin.
The pipeline will send hydropower from Quebec to New York City beginning in mid-2026.
The Rockland communities mentioned in this story will not directly benefit from the pipeline.
