DEP replaces lead and galvanized service lines for free, but not everywhere at once. It works neighborhood by neighborhood, and only owners in an active area can sign up. If you own a house in Queens or Brooklyn, the phases that matter are the ones now reaching you in the DEP lead service line program: Flushing, Borough Park and the areas around them. Here is where the rollout stands, based on DEP’s and the State’s own announcements, and what to do if your block is next.
How the rollout has moved
The Bronx came first. DEP’s lead service line plan lists the first federally funded replacement areas in the Bronx, including Concourse-Concourse Village, Kingsbridge Heights, Melrose, Mott Haven, Mount Eden, University Heights, Norwood, Williamsbridge and Soundview-Bruckner. The areas were chosen on environmental-justice criteria, lead line density and median household income. DEP later announced an expansion to the Bronx’s Community Board 12, with Flushing next and Borough Park after it.
Flushing is underway. The September 9 announcement from the Governor and the Mayor lists Queens work in progress in Flushing, Murray Hill, Queensboro Hill and East Flushing, alongside a long list of Bronx neighborhoods. More than 900 Bronx and Queens homeowners had been helped by then.
Borough Park is next. The same announcement lists Borough Park in Brooklyn and Soundview in the Bronx as the next phases. If you own in Borough Park, check the DEP lead service line map now, but no way to sign up early: eligibility opens when DEP contacts you.
Who gets in, and how you’ll hear
Only owners DEP contacts can participate. DEP’s program page says eligible owners get a letter; its expansion announcement says postcard or flyer. Either way, the notice points you to the eligibility check and sign-up at nyc.gov/leadpipe. Owners contacted by the Department of Design and Construction during water or sewer main work are eligible as well (DEP program page).
DEP’s plan describes a persistent outreach effort: mail, phone calls, email where available, and visits in person, continuing until the owner consents, declines, or fails to respond after at least four attempts. Because the line is private property, written consent is required. DEP’s letters also ask owners to share the notice with their tenants.
What happens once you sign up
The plan and program page describe the same sequence:
- Inspection. DEP’s contractor confirms the line is lead or galvanized and checks for obstructions such as mature trees, retaining walls, driveways or structures built over the line.
- Replacement. Underground utilities are marked first, then the line is replaced by open trench, boring or a tow line, depending on the site. The replacement takes about one to two days, and the owner or a representative should be present.
- Flushing and filter. The new pipe is flushed, and DEP provides an NSF/ANSI 53 pitcher filter with three replacement cartridges and instructions for flushing all cold-water taps.
- Restoration and records. Street and sidewalk restoration typically follows within two to four weeks, and a new record of the line’s material, length and installation date updates the city’s inventory.
A free lead test kit can be requested through 311, including three to six months after the replacement.
What owners in Flushing and Borough Park should do
- Check the NYC Service Line Map at nyc.gov/leadpipe. It shows what DEP has on record for your property and the neighborhood contract areas.
- Watch the mail, and answer. The free replacement only happens with your consent.
- Know your house. Lead lines are concentrated in buildings with fewer than six units, most often older one- to four-family homes. Flushing’s housing is a mix of 1920s–1950s houses and newer multifamily. If you’re unsure what you have, read how to tell if you have lead pipes.
- Clear access. Make sure the meter and the wall where the service enters the cellar can be reached on inspection day.
- Plan the inside. The program replaces the service line only. Interior galvanized pipe, lead solder and old fixtures stay, and DEP’s plan notes those are lead sources too. If you’re planning galvanized pipe replacement or whole house repiping, time it around the replacement so the cellar is opened once.
Outside the program areas, a private replacement typically costs $5,000–$10,000, according to DEP’s plan; lead service line replacement cost in NYC and free lead pipe replacement in NYC cover both routes. The Queens and Brooklyn pages describe the local housing stock.
If your address isn’t in a program area, or you want the interior done at the same time, see lead service line replacement and get a free on-site estimate. Call (929) 659-6658.