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March 24, 2007 |
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Once again, we are undergoing a transition in RIOC leadership that will alter how business is done and how the community is addressed, now and into the future. The leadership of RIRA is cautiously optimistic.
As we awaited DHCR Commissioner Deborah VanAmerongen’s convening of her first RIOC Board of Directors meeting (she is ex officio Chair of the Board) we learned that Governor Spitzer has appointed the new RIOC President and CEO. Stephen Shane comes to us from the private sector but has considerable Roosevelt Island experience under his belt (see the Main Street WIRE interview in this issue) and so it seems that we won’t have to reinvent the wheel for the umpteenth time. He is a real-estate lawyer with considerable Mitchell-Lama experience and, while he (like his predecessors) has no community management training or experience, his legal expertise may prove to be just what we need at this time. He chaired the RIOC Board during the Cuomo years, representing then-DHCR Commissioner Higgins.
Several RIRA officers, including Vice President Mark Chipman, Secretary Sherie Helstien, Government Relations Committee Chair Margie Smith, and Island Services Chair Betty Walker, recently sat down with Steve Shane to make initial introductions and to touch, superficially at this point, upon the many issues that have plagued us in recent years. However, prior to discussing our chat, I would like to mention some concerns as to how Mr. Shane’s appointment is being handled.
The RIOC Bylaws (Article IV, Section 2, if you’re keeping score) state: "Except as otherwise provided in the Act, the officers shall be elected by resolution at a regular meeting of the [RIOC] Board. Each officer shall hold office, unless removed, until his or her successor shall have been elected. Except as otherwise provided in the Act, a vacancy in any office shall be filled by the Board." Now, does this mean that the RIOC Board is responsible for hiring the president or for just rubber-stamping the governor’s choice? Not clear, it seems to me. I do know that the Board members have yet to meet Mr. Shane, much less have anything to do with hiring him. Further, I understand that an "emergency meeting" of the Board will be convened to ratify the new president when, clearly, this function is to be conducted at a "regular" Board meeting.
This process is nothing new, of course. Governor Pataki functioned outside the parameters of the RIOC Bylaws with impunity for twelve years. I had hoped (and still hope) that the functions of this public-benefit corporation would be regularized in the Spitzer administration, and perhaps the new RIOC leaders will make that so. You would think that the nine members of the RIOC Board surely would be tired of being marginalized in this critical perquisite of office. However, they never complained about three presidential appointments during the Pataki years and, it seems, they aren’t complaining now. Pity.
Unlike his predecessors, Steve Shane will hit the ground running when his appointment is confirmed. He has a depth of experience, both on the Island and in housing matters in general, that will make unnecessary the long "honeymoon" periods that several Pataki appointees demanded. Also, he impressed us, saying that he has read several years worth of this newspaper on-line, and is conversant with our concerns.
We agreed that getting ground-lease extensions for Island House and Westview, and then for Rivercross, are of paramount concern. We agreed that filling the Main Street commercial strip with community-responsive shops providing goods and services necessary for our survival is not rocket science and should be expedited. RIRA made the case that franchises representing national fast-food chains were not what we had in mind and that mom-and-pop stores providing essentials for families, similar to the ones we’ve lost over the last few years, are what we need, and we agreed that we should have at least one first-rate restaurant. We agreed that New York’s crying need for affordable housing should be ameliorated, if only in part, through the remaining buildings in Southtown. We agreed that incorporating Island residents in decision-making and in the planning of Island development and events, and prior to their becoming graven in stone, is a goal to strive for. Another goal is to provide incentives for off-Islanders to visit here and then to adequately and professionally publicize those attractions. We agreed that having the vast experience and expertise of so many Islanders was an unintended consequence (and benefit) of administering a planned community with a stable, long-standing, and knowledgeable population. And we agreed that realizing a state-of-the art park at Southpoint would be the greatest thing since sliced bread!
Of course, there are issues where we don’t agree and where Shane has come to no hard-and-fast conclusions. The Public Authorities Act, passed last April, requires public-benefit corporations like RIOC to "maximize revenues" while, at the same time, benefiting the pubic. When these often contradictory requirements are in conflict, precedent must be set by a RIOC with the courage to do so. There are no precedents for this new statute to be applied on behalf of a planned community like Roosevelt Island (assuming there are any like Roosevelt Island), and Steve’s legal background may work on our behalf in setting those precedents.
Our transportation problems are acute and will get worse as the Island’s population expands. The Tram, now that it operates within the MetroCard system, operates at capacity during rush periods and, unlike most public transportation systems, is close to paying for itself. RIOC must lead the way in working with its sister public authority, the Metropolitan Transit Authority, to plan for the expanded off-Island transportation that we need now and that will become critical as new Southtown residential buildings are constructed and occupied.
And then, there is the question of political philosophy: Should a State corporation take the place of elected local government, effectively disenfranchising an entire population? I don’t expect Steve Shane to address this perennial bugaboo; it’s the State Legislature’s provenance, after all, but nevertheless, it’s important that RIOC leadership be sensitive to our concern that we Islanders have no control through the ballot box over our own futures here.
We left the meeting with two immediate goals: First, to ensure that communication between RIOC and the various Island constituencies and organizations, especially RIRA, is a priority. Second, we urged Steve to find an issue that would respond to immediate attention – the Red Bus route snafu and the many darkened street lights were mentioned – that he could resolve, that RIOC could take credit for, and that would help to create a new dynamic between RIOC and us. I found it reassuring when he noted that, despite how RIOC Board members are appointed, we residents are his and their; it’s a small thing but few others in authority (make that nobody else) have recognized that relationship and have said so.
Speaking of communication, have you seen the latest RIOC News, the RIOC newsletter that has been (apparently arbitrarily) distributed to some buildings but not to others in recent years? I’m not sure what its purpose is; after all, this newspaper is the best source of Roosevelt Island information, and much of what is addressed in the newsletter could be (and should be) discussed in the RIOC column usually found directly adjacent to my RIRA Column in these pages. It seems, according to the lead article, that, "The Roosevelt Island Aerial Tramway made its first trip across the Hudson River in May of 1976." It’s this kind of crack reporting and fact-checking that makes this two-page glossy publication so essential to keeping this community well-informed! And remember: the newsletter is funded by RIOC, so we’re paying for it. Perhaps it’s time to retire this irrelevant periodical once and for all.
And finally: Herb Berman came to us just weeks before the Blackout of 2003 tested our emergency planning and preparedness and our patience. Appointed by a governor many of us found to be less than supportive of this community, Herb nevertheless has worked assiduously to improve life here. We haven’t always agreed; in fact, we’ve often been at loggerheads, but he has always been willing to return phone calls, trade e-mails, answer questions, and invite me in to argue and to schmooze. I wish him well and hope that he and Mrs. Berman find pleasure in a healthy and fulfilling retirement. Best of luck, Herb!