To Mayor Zohran Mamdani:

Since February 2026, residents and businesses around East 19th Street, Church Avenue and Ocean Avenue in Flatbush, Brooklyn have been experiencing a recurring, strong gaseous odor of unknown origin in our homes, backyards and surrounding streets.

More than a nuisance, the odor can be strong enough that residents must close their windows or leave the affected area. It can recur several times in a single day and has now been reported beyond the rear yards of East 19th Street, at street level and along Church Avenue, Ocean Avenue and nearby streets.

For seven months, residents have repeatedly called FDNY and National Grid, filed 311 complaints, contacted elected officials and Community Board 14, maintained a community odor-tracking log, and made homes and backyards available to investigators. National Grid has investigated numerous times and indicated that the odor is not "their gas". DEP has also been involved, but because the odor is intermittent, brief site visits have not captured what residents experience regularly.  
Despite these efforts, no agency has identified the source or taken clear responsibility for coordinating the investigation. The source and chemical composition remain unknown.

Residents using a consumer combustible-gas monitor have recorded readings as high as 450 ppm during odor events. Because the substance has never been professionally identified, we do not know what those readings represent or what, if any, health risks prolonged exposure may pose. That uncertainty demands a proper investigation.  Residents should not still be asking: What are we breathing? Where is it coming from? And who is responsible for finding out

We call on the City of New York to coordinate a comprehensive investigation, identify the source of this recurring gaseous odor, and take whatever action is necessary to resolve it.

We are asking you and the City to:

1. Designate a lead agency or interagency team responsible for investigating this issue through resolution. 
   Coordinating as necessary with DEP, FDNY, DOB, DSNY, National Grid and other appropriate agencies.
2. Conduct sustained air-quality monitoring, over multiple days: including monitoring in the rear-yard area of East 19th Street where the odor has repeatedly been strongest, rather than relying solely on brief site visits when the odor may not be present.
3. Professionally sample and identify the substance when an odor event occurs: residents need to understand what they are being exposed to and whether it presents a health or safety risk.
4. Investigate potential sources beyond natural gas: including but not limited to sewer infrastructure, building ventilation and exhaust systems, commercial operations, fuel or chemical sources, and other infrastructure in the surrounding area.
5. Expand the investigation geographically to reflect reports along East 19th Street, Church Avenue, Ocean Avenue and adjacent streets rather than treating this as an issue confined to a single building.
6. Provide residents with a named City contact and transparent updates on what has been tested, what has been ruled out, what remains under investigation, and what actions will be taken next.

Please sign and share this petition to help our neighborhood secure the coordinated investigation and environmental monitoring it needs.