Ellen Polivy is a member of the RIRA Common Council

Reading the last WIRE, I was struck by the similarity of two very distinct items. One was the interview with Stephen Shane. The other was the letter from Neil Weissman in which he shared the Department of Transportation’s response to Jessica Lappin in which it refused to consider a stairway to the Queensboro bridge because of "heightened security measures." I was struck by the dependence we have on the powers that be and by how much impact one person or group can have on our daily lives. I would hope that those people make decisions thoughtfully, with our needs in mind.

The residents of this Island are captives to the decision makers. In no small way, our well-being, our livelihood, and our very lives depend on our ability to make healthy choices in the food we eat, and on having a sure way on and off the Island. September 11 security issues have forced our only walking bridge into more frequent use as a lift bridge when boats are diverted to the east channel. That bridge, stuck in an up position, or blocked by some emergency at the power plants (as I eerily experienced one day for four hours), makes another walkway off our Island a necessity. This is not a frivolous request for us and must be treated by the DOT as worthy of a more thorough evaluation. Our security depends on it. We cannot accept a dismissive "bear-with-us-while-we-take-care-of-your-safety" response.

Mr. Shane seemed affable, smart, and eager to get to work. I would like to give him a chance. But did I pick up a patronizing attitude? (Tree-huggers? Soccer-field lovers?) We had a GDP that allowed for parks! Wouldn’t it have been a nicer community if we had a central park between Northown and Southtown, usable by all? By not living here, Mr. Shane doesn’t have to experience daily off-hours discussion of our problems. But that’s not all. He also doesn’t have to experience now-empty stores, live with the anxiety that his home will become unaffordable, be dependent on RIOC to act sensibly and in a timely fashion so he can get out of Mitchell-Lama without losing his home, wonder if he will be able to fit into the next subway car, or fear being late to work if he misses the Red Bus.

We live with the sad daily disconnect between what our community is and what it could have been if our needs had been considered when decisions were made for us. Wouldn’t it have been a nicer place if RIOC actually worked hand in hand with RIRA, the elected residents, to elicit and consider their input? Perhaps everyone’s lives would have been easier.

We are a planned community and, more importantly, a captive community. The community was planned carefully to accommodate the handicapped and infirm, who are captive to the stores and services available here. It is difficult for them to go off the Island, and they are therefore dependent on what we have to offer them. We need every storefront filled with useful establishments. A critical mass of stores will lure back the people who now shop off-Island and will inspire Octagon and Southtown residents to walk out of their way for their purchases. Then we can have real community resources with good utilization.

There can be no rationale for evicting storeowners for defaulting on rent, then letting storefronts sit idle for years, bringing in no money. Maximizing revenue has always been RIOC’s stated goal. I suggest that incentives like those given to the developers of Southtown might have saved the stores that we lost, and could have given them the ability to make needed upgrades. Improved stores with increased business add to the value of the leasehold and provide a way to maximize revenue to RIOC. A creative-thinking RIOC might have used the success of RIVAA as a model to offer an RFP to the community to develop profitable, rent paying, locally run enterprises such as, perhaps, a cafe staffed by our international neighbors, a cooperative bakery or a youth-oriented coffee shop run by and servicing the Island’s young people. The seemingly careless multi-year warehousing of stores on the Island is leading to the inevitable consolidator and, sadly, an end to the potential of small mom-and-pop boutique-type stores, or cooperatively run community stores that might have created a destination community. I certainly hope that RIOC will work with the community to ensure that the consolidator provides the types of stores we need.

Imagine if people from Manhattan could stroll a few blocks across the Queensboro Bridge, walk down a wheelchair-accessible ramp to Roosevelt Island, and visit the quaint retail establishments that RIOC has nurtured. Perhaps they would make a visit to Southpoint Park part of their day. Then RIOC would have done its job of both maximizing revenue and creating a vibrant community.

We need reliable transportation on and off the Island and within the community. I hope that RIOC solves the transportation problems before allowing the last buildings to be built in Southtown. If, as Mr. Shane says, he has no control over the MTA, then we should not be adding more people by building more residences in Southtown. Alternatively, he could practice good advocacy and figure out a way to get the MTA motivated to address our problems. Maybe we, as a community, can help him. Together we can pressure the MTA to fix our rush-hour cram and look into a walking bridge access ramp.

Perhaps it is not too late for Roosevelt Island. Maybe Mr. Shane really will give us an opportunity to work with him to plan this community in a way that wins for all of us.

I also hope that he will make it his business to find out what it feels like to live with the actions he takes. We residents are dependent on his good will and administrative prowess.