Manslaughter charges have been filed against two contractors at the site  being developed by Aurora/Gottlieb on Ninth Avenue in The Meatpacking District.  The same developers (and architect) are behind the proposed towers on the south side of Gansevoort Street. The charges arise from the treacherous conditions that existed during excavation inside the old Pastis building, resulting in the death of a worker.

From The New York Times:

The worker who died, Carlos Moncayo, 22, an Ecuadorean immigrant who lived in Queens, was crushed by thousands of pounds of dirt when the walls of a site in the meatpacking district, steps from the High Line, collapsed around him on April 6.

Prosecutors said on Wednesday that the two managers — Wilmer Cueva, of Sky Materials, and Alfonso Prestia, of Harco Construction — had ignored repeated warnings for months from private inspectors that treacherous conditions existed at the site on Ninth Avenue.

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From Gothamist:

“Carlos Moncayo’s death at a construction site was tragic, but it was also foreseeable and avoidable,” said Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance in a statement. “As detailed in court documents, repeated warnings about safety hazards at 9-19 Ninth Avenue were issued in the months, weeks, and even minutes before a trench collapsed, killing Mr. Moncayo.”

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