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September 22, 2001 |
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Robert H. Ryan, President Dear Mr. Ryan: Since Tuesday, September 11 – the day America was attacked – the entire nation has become very disaster-conscious. I know that during my years as a RIOC Board Member, we had developed and continually updated our Disaster Plan, which was prepared in a cooperative manner with both Coler and Goldwater Hospitals. Since your tenure in office (as well as Jerry Blue's), the Island residents have received little or no information from you or your office on the topic of a Disaster Plan. You have, to date, ignored FOIL [Freedom of Information Law] requests on Public Safety, issued to you from the Eastwood Building Committee. It is my belief at this juncture that it is irresponsible not to come forth to the population of Roosevelt Island regarding where you stand on disaster planning. Your responsibility in this area no longer can be a guarded secret. It is time for an exposure of what you are doing in these areas. Lack of a reply will tell me what I already believe, as do so many residents. Ronald T. Vass
To the Editor: As you walk into the Cultural Center entrance at 548 Main Street, you see tarps covering saved artifacts of Roosevelt Island history. These are a stair rail, mailboxes, a steamer trunk from the Central Nurses Residence, a memorial board from the City Hospital entitled "Lost in the Line of Duty," and other tidbits from buildings long gone. Will one day someone present to the RIHS a piece of the World Trade Center ruins? It is a frightening thought at this time. Please save your e-mails and correspondence from friends far and near and send a few of them to us. We will keep them for our time capsule. Our plans for a great history festival are in limbo. As soon as they are confirmed, we will publicize them. Judith Berdy
To the Editor: Recently I returned from Indonesia where the Board of Orphans International America visited an interfaith orphanage we support there. Never in our travels have we encountered a warmer reception – from Muslims, Christians, Buddhists and Hindus alike. At the orphanage we exchanged national flags – and the orphanage staff proudly flew our American flag from their building, proud to be connected to our great nation. We returned to the United States to witness the attack on the World Trade Center – an attack on America. But more than that, it was an attack on our world – an attack on civilization by the forces of extremism. In our own country, sadly, a milder form of extremism exists: immediately, fundamentalist Christians proclaimed that New York City had lost its divine protection because of our "sinful ways." A few other Americans blindly targeted anyone or anything "foreign" – mosques and people alike. Yes, friends and neighbors, it is extremism that is our enemy, not Islam. For our own sake, as well as the sake of the world's children, let us battle this extremism wherever it rears its head. One way to do this is to support efforts in developing nations where children are being raised to respect each other's differences and to embrace diversity. Children taught tolerance do not grow up to become terrorists. Our Board's treasurer shattered his leg escaping from the World Trade Center, and our thoughts and prayers are with him at this time. Jim Tendean-Luce
To the Editor: I have lived on Roosevelt Island for 25 years and not a day goes by without my thinking how fortunate I am to find myself on this tiny Island in the best City in the most wonderful country in the whole world. What words are there to express our feelings about what has befallen us? Horror, outrage, disbelief, rage... none are adequate. And the "event" itself is a catastrophe, a tragedy, an attack and something so much more that we do not have a word that can name it except to call it "9/11." Our country is great and powerful and those who are responsible will be brought to justice. We are a country of laws and we have leaders who act only by the will of the people. We can trust them to do what is right for all of us. We Roosevelt Islanders call ourselves a community. We should now behave as a community of many peoples. A group of nurses in Canada, remembering how the King of Denmark wore a yellow star when the Jews were in trouble, are wearing badges that say, "I am a Muslim supporter." I personally do not have enough courage to do this, but I do speak out whenever it seems appropriate. As soon as 9/11 occurred, I said to a group who had come up to the 19th floor of Eastwood to gaze at what was happening, "Before we rush to blame anybody let us remember how so many innocent people were made to suffer for what one of our own had done when the Federal building was bombed in Oklahoma City." We Americans have the right to wear any kind of clothing, worship any god (or even be an atheist) and have the freedom to speak out and say what we believe. So now why don't all of us actively show our support to anybody who looks "different"? Instead of hateful looks, why not greet our neighbor with a friendly smile and a few kind words? That's what a community is all about, isn't it? Diana Keyt
To The Editor: Diana Keyt's letter to the RIOC Board regarding elimination of the Tram's late shift contained appalling and implicit attacks on Island residents. Her comments show a chilling lack of compassion for her neighbors. Among them: UN employees who are neither "American citizens or permanent residents." It seems that, because these Islanders hold foreign passports, they are not entitled to voice their opinions or to demand quality of life. This display of xenophobia is embarrassing and out of place on an Island that prides itself on its diversity. I hope Ms. Keyt never finds herself living overseas; her lack of worldview would certainly make her experience miserable, and I am sure she would not enjoy the status of second-class citizen she assigns professionals working abroad. Next, Keyt attacks those who "make a habit of dinner, theater, etc." A hardworking New Yorker, I have never been under the impression that attempting to take advantage of the City's vast cultural offerings was a crime. I suggest Keyt reevaluate her own bitterness for those of us who allow ourselves to have fun now and then, and who demand a safe, inexpensive return home to boot. Finally, Keyt's ostensibly empathetic comment about the safety of our disabled neighbors, and the dangers of "finding themselves on Second Avenue and 60th Street in the middle of the night with a device that costs about $5000," is revoltingly paternalistic. Certainly, these neighbors are capable of making their own decisions and expressing their own needs – and they have, by protesting the Tramway shutdown. Keyt's thoughtless comments immediately called to mind the poem They Came for the Jews by Holocaust-era Pastor Martin Niemoller, who laments his silence when the Nazis deported his neighbors. Because he did not belong to the first groups of deportees, he remained silent. By the time they came for him, there was nobody left to speak up. Each Island resident is entitled to his or her opinion about the Tram. However, undermining the concerns of our neighbors, because they are different from us, is disgusting and dangerous. Finally, I find it amusing that Keyt, who seems so avidly anti-special interests, suggests using the late-shift money to build a pool and fountain in the Good Shepherd Plaza, so all Islanders could benefit because "everyone loves splashing in the water." I'm wondering if she would make the U.N. employees pay an extra fee to use the wintertime skating rink, to make up for their unpaid U.S. taxes; and whether she would allow our wheelchair-bound neighbors to slide on the surface (perhaps it would be okay if they agreed to use their wheelchairs as zambonis). As for the theatergoers, they'd certainly be so busy seeking culture in Manhattan that we wouldn't need to worry about their crowding the premises. I might also remind Ms. Keyt that, were the Tram to terminate service after 10 p.m., she would be forced to endure the "horrible" music at Gristede's. Gabrielle Parnes
To the Editor: About a week ago I wrote a letter to The WIRE. A woman had sent a letter arguing that we did not need evening Tram service and we are bunch of complainers, and I was responding. My letter was never sent. Through the last week, I hoped this person, whom I shall leave nameless, has come out to Main Street, walked up to the Fire House, to the Public Safety Office, and all around the Island. Our community has come together as never before. We had so many individual acts of kindness, it is hard to mention all. When I went into the deli, bakery and Trellis early Thursday morning, all the owners immediately sent food to the firehouse. The bakery packed a box of bagels for Public Safety. When neighbors were on Main Street getting notes written on giant oaktag pages, hundreds came over and wrote beautiful feelings. We planned to have three or four pages full. We had 29 when we finished, Thank you, Ali (of the card shop), who kept donating the oaktag, markers and tape. Thank you, Housing Management and store owners, for posting these in your windows. We had a touching service in the Chapel. Thank you, Sister Regina, for being here with us and receiving donations. On Sunday afternoon when there was a binful of blankets to be sent to the firehouse, they flagged down a car, loaded the blankets in it and the family made two trips to the firehouse without hesitation. The husband of the driver was a Connecticut firefighter. Thank you, NYFD Special Operations Command, for being headquartered here. You probably never knew us until this week. You are now members of our Island family. We will be here for you, to help you heal and return to full strength on the Island. Thank you, Public Safety, for being here. You are always here 24/7. You were here to help us escort police. You are the eyes and ears of the Island. You know us better than any outside emergency team. You are "our guys" and we are most proud that you stayed here and protected us instead of being at home with your families. I had scheduled a tour for some guests on Saturday. Reluctantly, I escorted them around a small part of the Island. This is an excerpt of the e-mail they sent me: Seth and I thank you very much for taking the time to show us around Roosevelt Island. Both of us found the tour interesting and informative. While this was a very sad time, perhaps that enabled us to see one of the virtues of Roosevelt Island. Although the housing is high-rise and the Island is in the middle of New York City, there is all the community cohesiveness we usually attribute to small towns. I really think Ed Logue would derive great pleasure from that. Judy Berdy
To the Editor: I am a second-generation Islander. My family has lived here for 23 years. Through all its changes, both positive and negative, I have always maintained a decent level of tolerance with the situations that we face on an everyday basis here on the Island. This tolerance was pushed to the limit the other day. I am a motorcyclist who parks faithfully in Motorgate garage, currently under the management of Edison Parking. Over my family's timespan on this Island we have had a total of two cars and three motorcycles parked in Motorgate. Some of these vehicles have parked in that garage for more than ten years. We have been through the smashed windows, scratched doors and stolen stereos. We have been through the expansions, construction, dust and lack of lighting. We have put up with a lot because Motorgate is our Island's only facility, and we have no other choices. I left for my annual vacation in the first week of September, returning after the tragic events downtown. I went to pick up my motorcycle and could not find it. After careful searching, I had come to the awful conclusion that someone had stolen my bike. How can a motorcycle simply disappear without a trace from Motorgate garage? I put that question to the Edison Parking staff and they had no answer either. I asked further whether the video surveillance installed in the entry and exit could have caught the criminal in the act. The employee told me, "We are waiting for new equipment. Those cameras are not working." I could not believe what I was hearing. The motorcycle area at Motorgate is on the fourth floor to the right of the main entrance, the busiest area in the garage. It is an area within clear view of the office windows, not more than 45 feet away. I always lock my bike at the wheels with a sturdy Kryptonite lock. A motorcycle that is locked at the wheels cannot be rolled so it could only have been lifted. One person could not lift my 490-pound motorcycle. That means that my bike was lifted by at least three strong people. Motorcycles are big and bulky. They would not fit into a normal four-door car. In theory, they would only fit into mini-vans, cargo vans, SUV 4x4s or 15-passenger vans, all of which fit into the Motorgate garage. That would mean that these thieves, three or more people, lifted my bike, maneuvered it into a large vehicle and left Motorgate garage. And no one, nor any staff saw anything? Incredible. Outrageous. If the thieves could do that to my bike, that means they could conceivably tow a car right out of the garage without being seen or stopped. Edison Parking has a very cozy situation here on the Island and we are a "captive audience," so-to-speak. They have totally monopolized the business for more than a decade. They have no competition; therefore their business functions in a bubble of complacency. The average Motorgate monthly parker pays upwards of $1200 a year in fees. Multiply that by roughly 400 vehicles and you have $500,000-plus a year. For that amount of money we should have adequate security cameras, all in working order throughout the garage, all recording on a 24-hour loop. There should be someone assigned to watch these cameras and/or the tapes. Signs should be placed on all areas of the facility clearly stating that recording is taking place to act as a deterrent. Additional cameras should be installed to record the interior of the fourth-floor office itself. Big corporations monitor their employees as a way of ensuring employee performance. Why should Edison Parking be any different? The Island security should increase the frequency of their patrols. The occasional ride through the garage is not working. Those frequent patrols work on a schedule. A thief could be timing the patrols and preying in the gaps. How many vehicles have to be violated and/or pilfered before Edison Parking takes action? Would another three stolen motorcycles justify some action? How about a dozen stolen foreign cars or their radios? Maybe a Mercedes-Benz or two? Edison Management is neither re-active nor pro-active in regards to security in their facility. The staff members working in that fourth-floor office are obviously powerless. No decisions or changes can be made without approval from the main office in the City. Out of sight, out of mind, is the way that they conduct their business. It's about time they hear from me and any of you concerned parking patrons about these issues. Make your voice heard before you become a victim also. Make my loss your gain. We pay far too much for Mickey Mouse service, and laughable security. Have no doubt – vehicles are not safe in Motorgate. Mail or call your complaints or thoughts to:
Mr. Molina Name Withheld
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