To the Editor:

Just what we always wanted: Instead of the pharmacy that served all of us in Northtown so well, RIOC forced that tenant out and he sold his business to Gristede’s, a location not as convenient to most of Northtown’s residents. Now, instead of a beautiful art gallery, we will have a fast-food "joint" serving junk-food donuts and coffee!

Thank goodness we have such competent folks at RIOC, looking out for our interests. The Starbucks is a bit more sensible, but it will probably fail due to a lack of sufficient population. Still, there is wireless communication possible in the Starbucks!

I am writing to express my opposition to RIOC’s proposed plans to close Gallery RIVAA. It is my understanding that the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation plans on voting to replace Gallery RIVAA with a Baskin-Robins/Dunkin’ Donuts at the northeast corner of the Rivercross building.

I am a firm believer that the arts play a critical role in this state’s economy. Replacing Gallery RIVAA will only serve to hamper any economic objectives that you may wish to achieve through this action. I have been contacted by residents on the Island who object to losing this cultural institution, and cannot understand why Gallery RIVAA faces possible eviction when there are a number of other vacant storefront properties available.

The haste with which this issue has been brought forth leaves little room to have an honest and open discussion between RIOC and the residents of the Island. I stand with the residents of Roosevelt Island in opposing any plans to close the doors to Gallery RIVAA. Furthermore, I strongly urge you to vote in favor of keeping RIVAA at its current location, or putting a hold on a final decision until the concerns of the community have been appropriately addressed.

State Senator José M. Serrano

Exactly what is the plan in your mind as to what the Roosevelt Island community should be? What is the gain for the residents when you dismantle RIVAA?

From the standpoint of residents, you seem to be intent on tearing the community fabric into shreds.

What you are doing is bringing scorn on and hatred for the Pataki Administration and all who are part of it.

Dunkin Donuts? Starbucks? Baskin-Robbins? Seems we already had a coffee/pastry/ice cream shop on the Island, but didn’t they close them down? Oh right, they were the Mom-and-Pop shop that’s well on it’s way to being extinct.

Hey, let’s shut down the hospitals (the patients can find some other place to stay) and turn them into malls instead. Anyone for a glorified Bed and Breakfast Inn at the Blackwell house? After all, who cares about history? Or art galleries, for that matter?

Roosevelt Island is becoming a mini-Manhattan. So much for our "best kept little secret."

While I’m sure your Public Safety Department people are looking forward to having a tacky Dunkin’ Donuts franchise on Main Street, I am appalled by the idea. Replacing a cultural icon like Gallery RIVAA with this ghetto-like blight is criminal.

There are plenty of other places to put an eyesore like DD/BR. How about by your house in Red Hook? How about over by Octagon? Or, how about on the other land you sold out from under us for pennies, Southtown? Let them take it. What’s that? They don’t want it, either? Haven’t you screwed us, our neighborhood and our Island enough?

I wish I could say you were simply a buffoon, but unfortunately you’re much more dangerous than that. Your malignant, agenda-driven decisions will be something the long-time residents will have to endure for years, long after you and your Governor are gone.

However, at some point in your life (hopefully while your Island "legacy" is still fresh in your mind) you may feel like your assets are being mismanaged, that you’re being swindled, that someone unqualified – who you didn’t select – is making life-altering decisions for you without your consent. In those times, think of us, think of karma, and remember this Herb, payback’s a bitch.

I have an idea: Next time anybody from RIOC wants a coffee or a coke or a croissant or a smoke, all the merchants on Main Street who are operating without a lease should refuse them service and tell them to go to Manhattan. Then, when they can’t board the bus or train or Tram because they’re packed to the doors, maybe they’ll see the community has needs that aren’t being properly addressed.

I’m thankful for the e-mailed information about Tram schedule changes and bridge closures.

However, as I’ve already pointed out and you acknowledged at the time, e-mail advisories shouldn’t be limited to information that everyone can get in advance, without e-mail – not to mention that only a minority is affected by Tram schedule changes between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. or weekday bridge closures, which is all I’ve ever heard about through RIOC advisories.

Again, what I would like to get from an e-mail advisory is, to be instance, being informed before I leave my office that I won’t be able to ride the tram home and I have to use an alternative – instead of having to go to the Tram and walk up the stairs before finding out it was no use going there.

Another example is the F-line shutdowns, this weekend and last. Not before we’re on the bus or at the station do we find out there’s no way we’ll be on time wherever it is we’re going. Isn’t that something RIOC does or could know about, and don’t you understand that’s the kind of information Islanders really need to receive by e-mail, both at home and at work?

Back in February of last year, RIOC wrote to me that my suggestions would be acted upon. I quote Catherine Johnson’s e-mail dated February 10, 2005: "In addition to advisories for scheduled downtime, we will be notified by the Tram operator whenever the Tram is down – even if this is for a very short time. We will send an advisory when we are notified it is down and another one as soon as we are notified the Tram is running again."

... to which you personally added, "See, it can sometimes work."

It appears that nothing really gets accomplished on Roosevelt Island unless there are numerous complaints. I have informed the doorstation at 625 Main Street that one of the sewers is backed up. There is water running down the emergency driveway. As RIOC stated, this is the responsibility of the Department of Environmental Protection.

I would think that, since this is dirty water coming out of the sewer and a school next door, something would have been done about this, but it’s been weeks and, with the weather starting to get warmer, this could cause a smelly situation.

As I recall, last year you also were going to look into the situation of the yellow school buses that tie up Main Street every morning when the people who live here are trying to get to work. The Red Buses not only get delayed waiting for the school buses to clear, but now the Red Buses also go down to Octagon Park, thus causing residents to be late for appointments and work. It appears that the Red Buses are no longer timed with the Tram.

It would be nice to have these items addressed.

There is a schedule, Public Safety is initiating a new plan to control the yellow bus problem, DEP was notified and our engineers are aware of the sewer problem. I just had a corneal transplant and hence I can not use the e-mail process with ease for the time being. Please excuse my brevity.

As a resident of three years who is not lucky enough to have subsidized rent or a co-op, I am once again appalled at the backward way that the Island responds.

There are many residents on the Island who would be happy to buy more goods and services if available. But here is the problem with the residents and RIOC – everything closes or is "shut down." There is no longer a bar – so we are forced to have a drink at the Trellis (fine, but it closes early), no longer pizza, no place to sit and have coffee and wi-fi.

I welcome Baskin Robbins/Dunkin’ Donuts! The gallery can move to a space that has been empty for years, since its primary use is meetings and to display art. The art is great – love walking by – but the Gallery closes early, as does everything on the Island except Gristede’s. For those of us who get home after 8:00 p.m., the Gallery is just space wasted. Move the gallery to one of the other buildings.

Also: I cannot believe how bad the Island merchants are at marketing their services to visitors. On any given weekend morning, we have hundreds of tourists to the Island that only come to ride the Tram, see the view and maybe take a stroll around. Wouldn’t it be smart if Trellis put a sign at the Tram, "Come have brunch and see the Island," or when the sports teams come to the Island, that there was some place they could eat and have a drink before they leave?

One of the problems with this Island that I love is that residents who have been here for so long have neglected to see the world change around them. They haven’t lived anywhere else; so why would they want things to be better? Newer, hip, more convenient, more services, any change! The other problem is those who have moved to the Island this decade: Most are U.N., so they don’t really get involved; or reside in the two hospital-worker buildings and never voice an opinion because they know they are not staying long, either.

Instead of some waste-of-time campaign against coffee and ice cream, how about a campaign to get rid of RIOC and the company that is deciding who gets leases for commercial property? Maybe if I paid half the rent that I do, and was able to park wherever on the Island that I wanted, or at least park on the [Motorgate] roof for less money, or if anyone ever gave me a straight answer about how to join the Garden Club, then I, too, would really care about a gallery that ten people use.

Also, this fear of losing the income diversity on the Island is ridiculous. Look around – most residents have been living in their apartments and co-ops for years and those rents were set many, many years ago and never reevaluated based on growth of income or children moving out. So you tell me how it is possible that a rent-subsided tenant can buy a building, or the owners of the co-op drive very expensive cars. We have a lot of expensive cars in the garage and, trust me, they are not all residents of Manhattan Park or Southtown buildings. So the economic diversity is going away, but the ethnic and cultural diversity is here to stay.

I do not think that a Dunkin’ Donuts/Baskin Robbins ice cream store is appropriate. As a physician and professor of medicine seeing at first hand the huge increase in obesity and diabetes in our population, particulary in our teenagers, why a government agency would increase the exposure of the young to such peril is beyond me. To add junk-food shops to the Island shows crass indifference to the documented health perils and it places a need for rental income above peoples’ need for good health habits. You have it in your power to do good as opposed to the expedient. Why burden the young with the ultimate consequences of a decision that should weigh heavily on your conscience? I believe you know better.

I am depressed. Once again RIOC has not missed an opportunity to swallow its wing-tips and further alienate this community. I’ve just come from the March 30 "special" or "emergency" RIOC Board meeting convened in part to address the proposed Baskin-Robbins/Dunkin’ Donuts use of the space currently occupied by the RIVAA art gallery. Hundreds of irate, sign-carrying residents attended to protest the eviction of this facility built with the sweat-equity of the artists collective that founded it, only to learn that the question was tabled for another time. What a brouhaha! What a waste of stomach linings!

We learned of this turn of events only three days before when the meeting agenda (that included a Board vote on the lease) was posted, so the RIVAA leadership was truly blind-sided. We learned that RIVAA President Tad Sudol was "unavailable" to meet with sales rep Paul Mas, a semantic choice of words that sounds as if Tad declined that meeting. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth; he was simply out of town on business.

RIOC pays for (I should say, Roosevelt Island residents pay for) the services of a public relations consultant, Robert Liff, who might have suggested an alternative to this precipitate agenda item, had he been consulted. Of course, only common sense, not a PR guru, was needed to see that delaying the vote, perhaps to the April 6 RIOC Board of Directors meeting already scheduled, might have allowed time for Mr. Mas to meet with the RIVAA leadership and perhaps produce some consensus with that group. But no, RIOC again demonstrated its tone-deaf capacity to further widen the rift when a touch of (un)common courtesy could have saved the day.

Herb, you’ve said that your job doesn’t have a pr component, but I think you’re wrong. The Roosevelt Island Chamber of Commerce surveyed the community some years ago as to the perceived needs for goods and services on our commercial strip. Why don’t you and Mr. Mas consult that survey? Wouldn’t it be putting the horse before the cart to find out first what Islanders need and try to fulfill those needs rather than opening the bidding to any and all comers? RIOC and this community will certainly not always agree but when it’s possible, easy, and in everyone’s best interests to communicate in a timely and meaningful way, why not do so? Until that day, tempests in a teapot like today’s meeting will continue unnecessarily and I will remain depressed.

I write as a member of RIVAA, hoping that our gallery may continue to occupy the space that it has now. Much love and work has gone into making this a first-class art gallery, with a growing list of admirers from all over the City as well as Roosevelt Island, along with being a space that has hosted many community events of interest to all residents.

The question remains, how to make Roosevelt Island a destination? The RIVAA Gallery is already a destination for some visitors. There are some other aspects of Roosevelt Island and some recent and not-so-recent events that have changed the impressions that the Island gives to visitors and residents alike. With the demise of the lovely open field that was previously in front of the old Nurses’ Residence, and which is now covered over with the Southtown development, a visitor’s first impression is no longer, "Wow! Open areas and trees! Kids playing soccer!" but instead is pretty much just "more buildings." That’s OK, of course, but the open-spaces-and-isn’t-this-place-great-for-the-kids atmosphere has gradually declined and another, different personality is taking shape, with both advantages and disadvantages.

Additionally, with the disappearance of the little bakery, the pizzeria, and the sports bar, and, oh yes, the marveous and top-notch Friday and Saturday night outdoor music at Trellis, the community now has become totally just a bedroom community. Nice place to maybe... bicycle. Again, that’s OK, of course, but it has made this place not even a little competition for an East Village or other Manhattan neighborhood treat for the eyes, ears, and all senses. Will Dunkin’ Donuts change that? I doubt it. (And, in major disagreement with many folks I know, that proposed ugly piece-of-cement Roosevelt monument that has been promoted for Southpoint will never bring people here in droves.)

Roosevelt Island residents often have their fantasies about this place, but sadly, in my humble and sometimes misplaced opinion, Dark Water got it kinda partially right.

I want to bring to your attention my thoughts regarding the recent Rivercross lottery process. At this point, this whole thing looks to me (and possibly to others too) like a big scam, just intended to make somebody rich.

Let me explain: In an article in The WIRE last fall, we found out that about 1,800 applications were sent out to those interested to apply. If we assume that only 1,000 applications were returned accompanied by the $150 money order, simple math tells us that this process raised $150,000. Now, we all know that the lottery was organized for about 400 new places on the waiting list, which means that those who did not win supposedly got their money back.

However, to my amazement, all the persons I know who applied to the lottery, did win this, which is against all mathematical and probabilistic laws. Don’t you think this is strange, to say the least? Not to mention the way results were announced (I did call the office several times, being told that the results will be sent out before Thanksgiving, then after Thanksgiving, then around Christmas, etc.)

Now, figure this: All the winners did receive letters telling them they won, with two numbers on them, which made it kind of impossible to determine your place on the waiting list. I did call the Rivercross office and I spoke with Mr. Mitchell Hammer, who explained to me that the two numbers on my letter (and on everybody’s letters) do not mean anything, because the company who organized this lottery "screwed up" and, in reality, the order on the waiting list, is a third number, totally different, but unknown to the winner. Then I wrote (certified mail return receipt) to the Rivercross Office, requesting a letter with my correct number on the waiting list at the present time. A few days later, Mr. Hammer called me and advised that he cannot send me a written piece of paper with my number on the list, as I requested him to do, and as I believe I should be entitled to, considering that I did pay $150 for this. He did tell me over the phone my current number on the list, which sure enough is totally different from the two numbers on the letter I received when I was told that I won the lottery.

So what is this all about? Why this total lack of transparency? Why did all applicants win the lottery (this is how it looks)? Who cashed in all the money from the applicants? What is going to happen with the winners, when the building will go out of the Mitchell-Lama program, which seems to be about to happen very soon?

Whereas everyone this gentleman knows may have been selected in the lottery, there were many who were not. A total of 575 applications were received and 365 were selected and placed on the waiting lists.

The $150 fee, which was approved by DHCR, went to pay for the services of Election Services Corporation, the company that ran the lottery, and to pay for the newspaper ads. If the building ever privatizes, the Board at that time will have to decide if they want to refund these fees. My guess is that they will.

The letters contained fill-in-the-blank lines for two numbers. One was simply an identification number which would aid the person and us in finding them on the automated list, and one was the position in the lottery. When they filled out the letters, they switched the numbers. As a result, I got numerous calls asking "how could my position on the list be 1,242?"

In addition, some of our wait-lists still have people on them from previous lotteries. Example: Although the letter may have said you were the fourth person selected in the 2005 lottery, you may actually be in tenth position on the list for that apartment size because we still have six older names ahead of you. This led to some confusion.

As per DHCR, the list and its contents are not available. All we can do is tell someone on the list their position.

I want to bring to your attention an incident which took place at Sportspark Swim Center, Saturday, March 11, around 2:00 p.m., which involved what I assume are two RIOC employees.

Essentially I went there with my ten-year-old son and a few friends (all Island residents) and their children – Mrs. Ana Papp and daughter (8), Mr. Radu Bass and sons (7 and 9), and Mr. Foued Aouchette and son (9) – to enjoy an afternoon at the pool. Our day was completely ruined by those two individuals in charge of the pool at the time.

Here are the facts:

At the pool’s door, we had to purchase tickets. I did purchase one for my son and me (I intended to swim), and my friends wanted to purchase tickets for their children only, because none of them (my friends) intended to swim. The lady with the tickets indicated that it is mandatory that everybody purchase a ticket regardless if he/she uses the pool or not.

In other words, my friends were not allowed inside the pool, to sit on the benches there and watch their children swim unless they bought tickets. The lady invoked the regulations, which were clearly printed there, and which did not specify that non-swimmers had to purchase tickets. She indicated that those were the directions she received from her management, and later indicated that it is impossible to monitor who is going to use the pool or not, therefore, everybody must pay. Needless to say, the pool was empty at that time.

The regulations displayed at the entrance clearly specify that "All infants (3 and under) must have one-on-one supervision with a paying adult" while "all children (4-17) must be accompanied by an adult, with no more than 4 children per 1 adult" – no mention whatsoever about paying for somebody who does not use the pool. It is important to mention that another friend (Mr. Vladimir Moraru) was already swimming, and he previously offered his help in supervising the children, therefore the four-children-one-adult rule was met; we were two paying swimming adults, and 5 paying children).

After useless arguments, Mr. Bass decided to pay, the other two persons did not, and all of us paying adults and children went inside.

It is important to mention than none of us received a ticket / receipt for the money paid, and I assume that is illegal. It is everybody’s guess how much of the money charged that day (or any other day) goes to RIOC, or in the pockets of the individuals in charge of the pool, or in anybody’s pockets, since there is no control of the money received from swimmers.

Another big surprise inside the pool: The lifeguard was limping due to a surgical procedure on his leg, thus making it impossible for him to save somebody’s life if an accident occurred. This is not acceptable; it’s illegal to have a crippled lifeguard on duty.

A few minutes later into our swimming session, the lifeguard became violent, started screaming at us, and decided that we had to leave the pool. After telling us, "You don’t tell me how to run my pool," he announced, "I quit," went inside the office, leaving the pool unattended, got dressed, and then went outside to the hallway while swimmers were still in the pool, unattended. At this point, the lady came inside, telling us, "I have no lifeguard, I close the pool, you have to leave."

There was another man with a child and a lady with her daughter swimming in the pool at the time. We all had to leave, after just seven minutes in the water. Some of us got our money back, some did not.

We all demand an explanation about how a situation like this is possible, that RIOC review its regulations and the staff’s rude attitude and disrespectful behavior towards customers. Is this the way RIOC wants to treat Island residents?