Photo by Erica Sherman
Alternate side of the street parking regulations and parking meter regulations for the purpose of street cleaning will be suspended this Monday, May 27, in observance of Memorial Day. You can download your own 2013 Alternate Side Parking Suspension calendar — in English, as well as in Chinese, Haitian Creole, Italian, Korean, Russian or Spanish (all PDFs) — from the NYC DOT’s website.
Source: Cymbrowitz’s office
The NYC Community EMS Volunteer Ambulance Corp. (CEMSVAC) picked a heck of a time to get rolling. The Midwood-based volunteer group was founded in June of 2012, a few months before Superstorm Sandy created unprecedented emergency conditions.
Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz awarded the new volunteer group a special citation, commending them for performing an amazing service in the worst of circumstances.
“The group dispatched between 40 and 50 volunteers all over southern Brooklyn to rescue residents and fellow first responders whose lives were in danger,” Cymbrowitz said in presenting the corps with an Assembly citation. “Our community needed all the help it could get during Superstorm Sandy, and CEMSVAC selflessly put the needs of others above their own and served as a reassuring presence during a difficult time.”
In accepting the citation, CEMSVAC Chief Operating Officer Ezra Max stressed the importance of volunteering in the world of EMS.
“We not only want to save lives,” said Max, “but also encourage people to get involved in careers in EMS. During a time when people are very ‘me me me’, we are trying to do the opposite — we are trying to bring people together to be selfless and help other human beings.”
Source: kevin dooley/Flickr
Almost nothing to report on this front. The Q is all clear of service adjustments throughout the weekend and Memorial Day, and just the smallest tweak on the far reaches of the F line.
F LINE
From 9:45 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Tuesday, Jamaica-bound F trains are rerouted via the M from 47-50 Sts to Queens Plaza.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
One of the worst consequences of Superstorm Sandy is the inevitable rise of insurance rates which are expected to come on the heels of FEMA’s redrawing of the city’s flood zone lines. The new flood zone lines will force people to both buy expanded flood insurance and make expensive alterations to their homes to meet new regulations.
This mix of new insurance and home construction upgrades are incredibly costly. According to a press release, new legislation sponsored by Senator Charles Schumer hopes to protect homeowners already victimized by Sandy from burdening unneeded expenses.
The proposed legislation is known as the Strengthen, Modernize and Reform the National Flood Insurance Program Act (SMART). If enacted the legislation would delay rate increases by six months after FEMA’s affordability study is complete and allow for an extensive study on how these increased costs will impact communities.
“This legislation ensures that Congress will have the necessary time and data to make changes to National Flood Insurance Program before any premium increases go into effect, so communities aren’t overwhelmed and property values aren’t decimated,” said Schumer.
Here is a list of everything SMART act will do:
- Delay premium increases until 6 months after FEMA’s affordability study is submitted to Congress.
- Expedite FEMA’s affordability study. To expedite this, the legislation permits FEMA to use available funds outside of the National Flood Insurance Fund to complete the required study and makes a technical change to the affordability study to ensure the timely completion of the study.
- Allow properties currently receiving a subsidized rate to keep that rate when sold.
- Study voluntary community-based flood insurance options which could provide communities with the option to purchase blanket policies for all properties in their communities or a portion of their communities. This could allow for communities to offer more affordable insurance policies to their residents and provide greater incentives for community-wide migration activities.
- Eliminate penalties on communities for self-financing flood protection. FEMA’s AR and A99 flood-zone categories provide more affordable flood insurance to qualifying communities in the process of flood protection projects. Currently, while flood expenditures on these activities can be fully counted toward community eligible calculations, there is a cap on the amount of state and local funds that may enter this calculation. Proactive communities who are sharing cost burdens with the federal government for flood protection should not be penalized for self-financing these projects. This bill will eliminate the 50% cap on state and local contributions to these projects.
- Federally funded new construction is currently prohibited in V-zones. In some situations, new construction should be permitted in the V-zone when relocation is impractical, provided the facilities are built to strict, established flood protection standards. These facilities will also be subject to a FEMA evacuation plan to promote the safety of the persons who occupy or access them.
This probably isn’t legal (Source: Wikimedia Commons)
Councilmembers Lew Fidler and Jumaane D. Williams passed legislation that they hope will crack down on illegal gambling in the city. According to the press release, the bill, which passed by a 49-to-0 vote in the City Council, specifically targets illegal activity in new gaming cafes that have been establishing themselves in neighborhoods across the city.
The gaming cafes are often marketed as internet cafes, but also promote sweepstakes and other prizes for playing online games in their establishments. According to the pols, some cafes abuse legal loopholes in the law by offering cash prizes or awards for certain activities. Councilman Williams highlighted the importance of closing these loopholes and what it means for communities across the city.
“The message that Intro 1035-A sends is clear; we will under no circumstances tolerate businesses that attempt to take advantage of legal loopholes in order to prey on lower-income individuals,” Williams said in the release.
The press release explained the source of this new phenomenon.
Council Members Williams and Fidler have been advocating against the proliferation of illegal gambling at internet sweepstakes cafes since they discovered establishments that had opened in and around their districts, including Lucky Spot NYC, Reels of Fortune and Monopoly Cafe. Since then, they have worked with local community boards to ask DCA to examine this issue, several of these locations have closed down or been investigated by the NYPD. The council members have also discovered advertisements for similar cafes located in all five boroughs.
According to a New York Post report, the NYPD has shut down nine internet cafes since November and arrested eight people affiliated with their operation.
Photo: http://www.farah.net.au/
This just in from the National Weather Service…
Notification issued on 5/23/13 at 3:30 PM. The National Weather Service has issued a Flash Flood Warning citywide until 5:30 PM. Excessive runoff from heavy rainfall will cause flooding of urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses as well as other drainage areas and low lying spots. Do not drive your vehicle into areas where the water covers the roadway. The water depth may be too great to allow your car to cross safely. Move to higher ground.
Looks like we’re in for it again. Has your street changed since Superstorm Sandy? Does Sheepshead Bay and our surrounding communities have new flood zones? Does your yard or street flood more often now since Sandy? Let us know. Send pictures and tips to tips@ sheepsheadbites (dot) com.
Source: Gregory Maizous
A Coney Island Hospital doctor was honored for her leadership in helping advance the cause of the public hospital system.
Olga Golubovskaya, an MD and an associate chair of Rehabilitation Medicine at Coney Island Hospital (2601 Ocean Parkway), was one of eight Brooklyn doctors and 28 city doctors overall to receive a Doctors’ Day award. Issued by the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC), the award recognizes doctors for their leadership and commitment to advancing the mission of the public hospital system and providing the highest quality healthcare to New Yorkers.
Dr. Golubovskaya, and the other doctors were given high praise by HHC President Alan D. Aviles.
“The physicians we honor on this Doctors’ Day are vital to the well-being of our city. They are helping to make HHC a national model of safe, efficient, and patient-centered health care delivery and care deeply about our mission to serve New Yorkers regardless of their ability to pay or immigration status,” Aviles said.
Congratulations to Dr. Golubovskaya and all the other winners for their excellent service and their recognition. Keep up the good work!
(Source: NYC Dept. of Parks and Recreation
UPDATE (5/23/2013 @ 11:15 a.m.): Sorry beach goers, the new Coney Island and Brighton Beach modular comfort stations won’t be finished by Memorial Day. According to a report by the New York Daily News, the new stations won’t be ready for this weekend and temporary toilets will be put in place instead.
The futuristic Coney Island and Brighton Beach bathrooms are almost in place as workers from the New York City Parks Department finish their work this week.
The new stations, which cost $1.5 million each, have brought anger from residents of the Oceana luxury condominiums (50 Oceana Drive West) who are upset that the new bathrooms disrupt their ocean view.
Despite their protests, Parks Department officials insist that the bathrooms are necessary to handle the huge crowds of people who visit the beaches of Coney Island every year.
Anywho, does that ramp on the left, leading to that RV-in-the-sky, look a little steep? We’ll have to get over there and see what these things are like first-hand.
On the turf of former State Senator Carl Kruger and embattled State Senator John Sampson, U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch came before a group of concerned citizens with a message: don’t despair, not everyone is corrupt, be you must be active and involved to ensure the best from your elected leaders.
Madison Marine Homecrest Civic Association hosted the event on Thursday, May 16, inviting Lynch to the Carmine Carro Community Center in Marine Park to talk about the recent cases. Lynch’s appearance came amid scandalous headlines involving Sampson who’s at the center of a handful of federal probes, and less than two years after the arrest and resignation of Kruger. Both represented portions of Marine Park.
The entire 40-minute talk by Lynch, which included questions from the audience, is posted above. But, aside from Sheepshead Bites, a slew of other reporters were at the event. Here’s what some of them wrote:
From Newsday:
Don’t “succumb to cynicism and apathy. Don’t give up — stay committed,” said Lynch, who is the chief federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn, which also includes, Queens, Staten Island and Long Island.
“Stay involved . . . Don’t give up.”
… When the audience was asked how many of them believed all politicians are corrupt, nearly everyone in attendance raised a hand.
Lynch told the audience, “We have to take back the system from the people who trampled on it. I don’t own it, you own it.”
From the Brooklyn Eagle:
Lynch took that message a step further when she said that not only should people not give up on the political process, but also that their participation is necessary.
… U.S. Attorney Lynch stated that apathy hurts the democratic process and that – along with wiretaps, undercover officers, and witnesses using recording devices – ordinary citizens who notice inconsistencies often play a big role in bringing corrupt politicians down.
“We are all enforcers,” Lynch said. “We all play a role. People need to get involved. ‘See something, say something’ is not just a slogan for the subway.”
Lynch also cautioned people to be patient in corruption cases and warned that just because somebody’s name is brought into the mix doesn’t necessarily mean they are corrupt.
“There can often be names that come out that should not have come out because, especially early on in an investigation, it’s impossible to determine their involvement and often it just tars their names,” she said.
Political reporters converged on Lynch after the event, asking her about recent allegations from minority lawmakers that the feds, including Lynch, were unfairly targeting elected officials of color. Lynch, herself an African-American who began her career working in civil rights, denied the charges.
From the Eagle:
When Lynch was questioned about whether black politicians are unfairly targeted, she replied, “Not stealing money is not a high standard. We look at the behavior of everyone. Our goal is to protect communities. You deserve integrity regardless of what your background is.”
And from Politicker:
When Lynch was questioned about whether black politicians are unfairly targeted, she replied, “Not stealing money is not a high standard. We look at the behavior of everyone. Our goal is to protect communities. You deserve integrity regardless of what your background is.”
… “No matter what type of case we prosecute, people who may feel targeted are concerned and make all kinds of statements about it,” Ms. Lynch said. “It’s part of the problem of public corruption that it really almost makes everyone look as if they’re involved, even if they’re not. And so you have people get very paranoid and very nervous and feel as if they’re under a microscope … We don’t go around targeting people other than those that we strongly have evidence [against], but I think what happens is, the atmosphere is very toxic, for lack of a better word, and it does affect people and that’s a byproduct of these cases,” she said.
A slew of local elected officials, including Councilman Lew Fidler and Assemblymembers Helene Weinstein and Alan Maisel, spoke before Lynch, and used it as an opportunity to remind attendees that the recent headlines reflect a few “bad apples.” They also touted anti-corruption legislation they’re working on, including disallowing lawmakers from using campaign funds on legal fees, and the ability to strip convicted legislators of their pension.
You can see their remarks here:
Bad news for bicyclists. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has changed its plans regarding the bike path that runs along Plumb Beach. In a press release, the Army Corps of Engineers has announced that a section of the bike path will be closed until construction is complete – which won’t be before December.
Last March, we reported that the Army Corps of Engineers was planning on creating a detour for the bike path, but upon further review, it appears that the Engineers are reneging on their promise to keep it open. Dan Falt, the Army Corps project manager for the Plumb Beach project explained why change of heart:
“We had originally hoped that we would be able to maintain a detour for bicyclists and pedestrians while carrying out this critical coastal storm risk reduction work, but it’s becoming clear that in order to ensure public safety around the active construction site we’re going to have to close the bike lane completely. We’re doing this work in an extremely tight space, surrounded by water and the busy Belt Parkway and we need to make sure that the contractor has the space to operate while also ensuring public safety by keeping bicyclists and pedestrians away from the construction activities,” Falt said in the release.
Bicyclists riding along the bike path will have to get off the path at Flatbush Avenue if they are traveling west or Knapp Street if traveling east to prevent riding into the closed section.
