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November 4, 2006 |
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In this, my final column as President of the Residents Association, I’d like to review the last two years, to suggest a blueprint for future efforts and thank those who made this a rewarding task.
This session of the Council has been primarily involved in trying to keep RIOC from implementing plans that would, by and large, screw the residents while selling off chunks of valuable Island assets to private concerns. I am proud that the Residents Association mounted a strong fight against the Octagon project. Although we welcome the many fine people who have moved into this building, they are situated on land zoned as parkland and sold to developers for a pittance. RIOC gets $11 million in a one time payment – about a quarter of what Manhattan Park pays per unit, while Octagon landlords will gross close to $20 million in this year alone in rentals with a present value of more than $1 billion dollars over the life of the project.
As for current problems, the most frequent complaint that I hear involves the way that RIOC has totally destroyed the reliability of the Red Bus service. In the morning, buses become so quickly packed they have to skip stops. To make matters worse, twice RIOC has made really stupid route changes that RIRA was instrumental in rolling back. While Manhattan Park owners have a contractual requirement to support and maintain the Red Bus service that their residents depend on, RIOC, in its haste to make this awful deal at Octagon, never even bothered to consider the obvious problems that these additional residents would cause to an already overburdened system, and never required the owners to fund their fair share of the costs of shuttling Octagon residents to and from the subway and Tram, even though the question was asked many, many times by residents during the sham "public hearings."
In the early ’90’s, Newt Gingrich architected the "Contract for America," an anathema to most New Yorkers. As of this writing, RIOC plans a similar disaster that I call the "Contract on Roosevelt Island," by selling the Motorgate Garage, the commercial properties on Main Street, destroying the Steam Plant, Sportspark and the Tennis bubble to build a Target store or a similar monstrosity. They are working to steal another three acres at Southpoint Park for more housing or commercial development, which will immeasurably harm the usefulness or attractiveness of that area. As residents, there’s very little we can do about stopping these travesties, except to make our voices heard in the upcoming elections. This will insure that a new and more competent administration understands our wishes. I urge you all to vote yes on all the referendum issues.
Unfortunately, all over the State, Governor George Pataki is engaging in last-minute shenanigans to extend the terms of his appointees. I hear rumors that Herb Berman is hand-picking new RIOC Board members and extending the terms of the inept old ones, so that the next Governor will be stuck with this deadwood for another two to four years. I very much fear that this RIOC can do a great deal more damage before the next Governor can set new policies. We have had numerous meetings with the Spitzer staff, alerted them to this risk, and stressed the need for swift replacement of the current bureaucracy with a competent one.
I was always touched by the story of how Pablo Picasso wanted his masterpiece Guernica returned to Spain, but not until "public liberties and democratic institutions" were restored to his homeland. Sadly, Picasso passed away two years before dictator Franco. This session of RIRA will pass on before we residents get the democratic liberty to decide who manages Roosevelt Island, but my fondest wish is that we don’t have to wait much longer for the same freedom that is enjoyed by virtually every other community in this country.
Short term, we must demand that whoever manages us respects our dwindling open spaces, brings back much-needed shops to Main Street and comes up with a reasonable transit plan – even if it means adding more buses. Looking long term, we need a phased plan that restores the entire Southpoint Park, not a version that is defaced by more RIOC development projects. Our Youth Center needs a long-term lease to extend its facility, because our children deserve it. At some point, I would love to see a stairway or elevator to the Queensboro Bridge restored so that we can freely walk to and from Manhattan when the Tram or subway is out of service or just when it suits our fancy.
I am very grateful to the many folks, both on the Common Council and outside of it who have worked so diligently to improve our Island. It was my pleasure to chair these meetings, which were always friendly even when there was a wide diversity of opinion. I was fascinated by how frequently the Council consensus diverged from my own opinions, but truly respect the quality of decisions that we, as a group, were able to formulate. Vice President Margie Smith is one of the smartest and dedicated people that it has ever been my pleasure to work with. Her good spirits and fine counsel have been invaluable. Sherie Helstien, our RIRA Secretary, is a true wonder of energy, and has worked hard and effectively in all of our events and initiatives. Mark Chipman, Chair of Island Services has coordinated the last two nominations cycles and is a very worthy candidate for Vice President in the upcoming elections. Erin Feely-Nahem, Social and Educational Committee Chair, has organized some lovely events, including our recent wine-tasting party. We were also privileged to work with Lilly Shuey Picchione, who brought a lot of focus and expertise as Chair of the Planning committee and author of several excellent articles in The WIRE. Thanks to Lynn Chambers for truly professional work as RIRA Treasurer. Volunteers who are not on the Common Council also made wonderful contributions, particularly Vicki Feinmel, who organized Island events like the recent dance performance on a magical summer’s eve in Lighthouse Park, and Matt Katz, former and perhaps next RIRA President, who represented RIRA at emergency planning sessions and blood drives. We also all owe thanks to Joyce Mincheff, who has volunteered again to oversee the RIRA elections (and please contact me if you are able help as a "pollwatcher" this Tuesday).
Although our Island has been abused by Pataki’s appointees, the folks we are allowed to elect have done a great job for us. Our City Councilmember, Jessica Lappin, State Assemblymember Pete Grannis, and State Senator José Serrano have all made very special efforts on our behalf.
I’d also like to offer genuine thanks to WIRE Editor Dick Lutz for providing a forum for the RIRA column, and much more importantly, for undertaking the incredibly time-consuming (and financially draining) responsibility of writing, publishing and distributing over 20 issues per year of real news about what is happening on Roosevelt Island.
Finally, thanks to all the residents of Roosevelt Island for trusting me to represent you. I have been honored to talk with many of you personally and via e-mail, and hope that I haven’t let you down.
I know that my columns have been caustic, and highly critical of RIOC officers and some Board members. Margie Smith and other people that I respect have suggested that I tone down the invective. When I initially took on this job, there was a reasonable degree of "give and take" between RIOC and RIRA. We approached the Berman administration with a clean slate and sincere intent to work with them. However, after some initial cordial meetings, Mr. Berman and his staff began to close off access, making it apparent that they had no interest in dialogue. Since diplomacy had failed, as it has with every one of the hacks appointed to this role by Pataki, I concluded that bluntness and honesty about how poorly we are being governed here could only improve matters. While some may find my tone to be objectionable, few have found fault with the nature or basis of my criticism.
My wife, Nurit, and I have truly loved this place ever since New Year’s Eve, 1982, when we moved here. After months of searching, it only took about a five-minute walk from the Tram to be sold on Roosevelt Island. Our two kids frequently tell us how fortunate they feel to have been born and raised as Islanders. We have wonderful friends and neighbors here from all walks of life and ethnic and racial backgrounds. I have traveled a lot, but I have never seen a more successful or stimulating community. I hope that the folks moving here today will be able to say the same.