SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

Photo by Allan Rosen

THE COMMUTE: Last Wednesday, I rode the B4 bus to obtain some signatures for the petition started by the Sheepshead Bay-Plumb Beach Civic Association to restore service to Plumb Beach on mid-days, evenings and weekends. I boarded the first bus of the afternoon that was due to arrive at Avenue Z and East 16th Street at 1:52 p.m. because it would, presumably, have more passengers than the following buses. There were between 15 and 20 on board and not enough time for me to ask everyone to sign the petition. Most were very eager to sign; a few declined. On my two round trips I collected about 30 signatures.

It gave me the opportunity to speak to the passengers as well as the bus drivers. What was most surprising was that about five riders on the first trip had no idea that they were on the first bus since 9:00 a.m. That tells me that, after two years, there still are people waiting for the bus all day long, eventually giving up after waiting 30 minutes or an hour when they finally decide to check the bus schedule.

One of the passengers who did not know she was on the first bus, asked the driver when we were approaching Knapp Street, and where to get off for the fishing boats. I told her we already passed them because you cannot see them from the Belt Parkway service road and she should wait until the last stop and ride back. It was her first time in Sheepshead Bay and she made the trip just to see the bay because she heard it was such a nice place to visit.

Now the MTA believes everyone who rides a bus does it because they have to get somewhere and have no other choice. They don’t believe anyone makes discretionary trips, just because a service exists. There are many other things the MTA does not know about its passengers, like those who are forced to take car service during times the B4 does not operate. If they had sent a representative to last week’s Transit Town Hall, they would have known that.

Continue Reading »

Source: JannaR/freakingnews.com

Telling Tips is a series of articles from local experts to help you save money, make better decisions and plan for a better future.

Yes, the government moves slowly. The Treasury Department has finalized regulations that have been talked about since 2002. Under T.D.9584, U.S. banks, beginning on January 1, 2013, will report the interest earned on deposits held by nonresident alien individuals. This reporting of the interest to the I.R.S., and then to the home countries of those individuals (note individuals, not corporations), has caused a number of nonresidents to start moving their money out of (mainly) a number of Florida banks.

Who could these people be? Cuba’s Castro? Chavez of Venezuela? Assad of Syria?

Continue Reading »

Click to enlarge

THE COMMUTE: In Part 1, I outlined my reasons for a new bus route to the Rockaways, an extension of the B31 to Bensonhurst, combination of the B2 and B100, and partially restoring the B4 to serve Neptune Avenue in Brighton Beach. Today I discuss the remaining proposals.

Operation Of MTA’s Proposed B44 Select Bus Service (SBS) to Sheepshead Bay Station Instead Of To Knapp Street

The MTA maintains that they cannot afford to operate routes such as the B4, which carry as little as six passengers per bus, yet they are proposing to boost B44 Nostrand Avenue service from every four minutes in the rush hours — when you count both locals and limiteds — to every three minutes. The B44 will also only carry about six passengers per bus south of Avenue Z, operating much more frequently than the B4, when it operates at all. Where is the logic?

Continue Reading »

The Manhattan Beach Community Group will meet tomorrow, May 16, 8:00 p.m. at Public School 195, 131 Irwin Street.

Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries, who is currently campaigning against City Councilman Charles Barron in the hopes of becoming the Congressman for the 8th Congressional District, which now includes Manhattan Beach, will share his positions on a variety of issues.

Additionally, a AAA traffic expert will be on hand to discuss speeding issues in Manhattan Beach, and there will be an update regarding security cameras for Manhattan Beach.

For more, e-mail info@manhattanbeachbrooklyn.org, go to www.manhattanbeachbrooklyn.org.

Colin Beavan, Green Party candidate (Source: ColinBeavan.com)

If you live in our coverage area, chances are you didn’t have reason to know much about Congressman Edolphus Towns until recently. After all, for the last 29 years the Democrat has represented Bed-Stuy, Canarsie and Brownsville – neighborhoods that have little in common with our own.

But, thanks to this year’s Congressional redistricting, Towns’ district sprouts southwest, pulling the communities of Marine Park, Plumb Beach, Manhattan Beach and Brighton Beach into a 71 percent black and Hispanic district.

Now Towns is stepping down, and the race to replace him is heating up. Vying for the Democratic ticket are City Councilman Charles Barron, a controversial figure citywide with a strong following in his East New York, Brownsville, East Flatbush, and Canarsie base, and Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries, who has won the endorsement of many of our local elected.

But no Congressional race would be complete without a couple of long-shot candidates. Enter Alan Bellone and Colin Beavan.

Continue Reading »

Click to enlarge

THE COMMUTE: Above is the map I created showing my proposed bus routing changes for Southern Brooklyn. Yesterday, I discussed why changes are needed in Sheepshead Bay and surrounding neighborhoods — to build ridership on our bus routes, so that the MTA does not continue on its destructive path of cutting service and severing bus connections, as I discussed at the recent NYC Bus Riders’ Forum. There is untapped demand, yet the MTA refuses to acknowledge this, wanting us to believe that buses are only necessary to reach subway stations, so many routes — especially the ones with light patronage — can be discontinued inconveniencing just a few.

They do this by distorting the effects a route’s discontinuation will have, always citing alternate nearby routes that could be used, even if they are not practical. They do not understand the role that the bus can play in our mass transit system. They do not recognize that many seniors are not able to walk stairs to use the subway system because few stations are handicapped accessible. They are so shortsighted that they do not recognize that fewer and shorter bus routes, or routes that do not operate on weekends, will only drive up the cost of providing Access-A-Ride. There is a deficit that has to be plugged and the best way to do that is to reduce operating costs by cutting service. That is the extent of their thinking.

Now is the time to show them they are wrong and that more needs to be done — that they need to start thinking about expanding bus service. Now is the time to recognize untapped demand that has always existed, that the MTA is not aware of because they keep zero statistics on the number of trips that can only be conveniently made by car service.

Continue Reading »

After last week’s decision by a New York Supreme Court judge that the allegedly fraudulent ballots in the 27th State Senate District race were, in fact, legitimate, the Board of Elections has completed their canvas – Republican David Storobin is in the lead by 27 votes.

The current count, according to a statement released by Councilman Lew Fidler’s campaign, Storobin’s Democratic opponent, is as follows:

• Storobin: 11,082
• Fidler: 11,055

That leaves a 0.12 percent difference between the two candidates, triggering a provision in BOE procedures that states that any race in which the margin between the two candidates is less than one-half percent of the total votes cast (in this race, 110 votes), a full hand recount of each and every vote cast must be done.

Regardless of who wins the seat, their influence has already been stunted in Albany. The legislative session ends in June, and, due to redistricting, the seat is slated to be eliminated come January. It’s possible that the winner will never cast a single vote.

However, at the very least, the race is a learning opportunity for the Board of Elections. The new electronic scanner machines implemented citywide in 2010 have never been saddled with a full hand recount. The BOE told Sheepshead Bites they’re not even sure how long the process will take.

“We have to open everything; every paper ballot [including paper returns from the electronic scanners]. It’s over 22,000 ballots,” said BOE spokesperson Valerie Vazquez. “We just have to make sure that there’s confidence in the election and that every vote that was cast was in fact counted.”

Flier for our Town Hall meeting this Thursday. Come and make a difference!

THE COMMUTE: I have been planning bus routes for my entire professional life, 10 years of which was in some type of official capacity. It is what I most enjoy doing. However, this article is not about me. It is about you. It is about how Sheepshead Bay, Gerritsen Beach, Marine Park, Bensonhurst, and Brighton Beach can get better bus service by having fewer transfers and shorter walks with little added costs.

I developed a set of bus route proposals, including a few routing changes, some extensions, one new route, and elimination of another. It would involve a small investment in our bus system, which is why the MTA will say it cannot be done since their policy is to only implement zero cost changes. They want to reduce the size of our bus system to encourage more subway use even if those trips are indirect and cause much inconvenience. They are not interested in increasing bus connections to make bus service more convenient.

You can show support for these ideas, which I will explain tomorrow and Wednesday, or any others you may have to improve bus service, at Thursday’s Town Hall (click here for details).

If we stick together as a community and work with our neighboring communities and our elected officials, the MTA will have to hear and listen to us. Communities in the past have rarely initiated bus routing changes. They just sat back and merely accepted whatever the MTA has doled out. The only time they speak up is to oppose a change the MTA is proposing. That is not the way it has to be. Now is the time to be proactive instead of reactive.

Continue Reading »

The Internal Revenue Service. Source: dctim1 / Flickr

Telling Tips is a series of articles from local experts to help you save money, make better decisions and plan for a better future.

Why file an amended tax return?

A. To correct a filing status.

B. You used the wrong stock basis in a prior year and paid too much tax.

C. A natural disaster destroyed your home.

D. You filed a short form (1040A or 1040EZ) and you realized you could itemize.

E. All of the above.

Answer: E: All of the above.

Every year millions of amended returns are filed. Mistakes occur, and if you need to file an amended return, you should not hesitate. Why file an amended return? Some reasons amended returns are filed are to correct a filing status (single or head of household to married, to report income that was overstated or omitted, to claim a deduction, exemption or credit that was overlooked, or to comply with a Congressional change in the tax laws, just to name a few).

Continue Reading »

The Supreme Court judge overseeing the ballot disputes in the State Senate District 27 campaign threw out Councilman Lew Fidler’s allegations that a member of David Storobin’s campaign committed voter fraud, ordering the Board of Elections to count 119 disputed ballots likely to fall in favor of the GOP.

The Fidler campaign contended Storobin’s team committed voter fraud when a paid Storobin consultant intentionally gathered 119 absentee ballots for Russian voters who were capable of reaching the polls. In New York, voters can only cast absentee ballots if they are physically unable to get to the polls. However, at least 16 of those “permanently disabled” voters cast a vote in person on election day. After failing to appear in court on April 26, the consultant – Alla Pometko – was subpoenaed by the judge last week, when she declared her innocence.

The judge determined that Fidler’s evidence came up short, and that Pometko’s testimony appeared credible.

“The court finds that petitioner has failed to meet his burden of establishing, by clear and convincing evidence, that Ms. Pometko or Storobin are chargeable with knowledge of any fraud with respect to the procurement of absentee ballots,” Judge Larry Martin wrote. “In fact, the evidence adduced at trial falls far short of the allegations contained in the petition and bill of particulars.”

Following the decision, the campaigns issued the following statements (published in order that they were issued):

Campaign spokesman David Simpson said, “We were right all along. Everything the Storobin campaign did to encourage voter participation in this election, especially our outreach efforts into the Russian community, was done in accordance with the law and 100% above board. Today the court affirmed that. The Fidler campaign has wasted time and taxpayer money trying to steal this election and disenfranchise Russian voters. But all they succeeded in doing was to delay the outcome of the election for another month. Once these ballots are counted, we are confident that David Storobin will regain his lead and will be declared the winner.”

From Lew Fidler:

We respect, but respectfully disagree with, the Court’s decision. Over 100 otherwise healthy people spontaneously declared themselves to be disabled in the presence of no one other than David Storobin’s staffer. This is a proven fact. The Storobin campaign knows exactly what it did here and purposefully set out to do it.

This election – and this count – are far from over. While we await the actual opening of these ballots, a hand recount of more than 22,000 ballots will undoubtedly follow. At the very least, as this will be a first manual recount since the use of the new scanners, we will find out if the new machines are in fact giving us all an accurate count. When all the ballots are double-checked for accuracy, we will know who will be entitled to take the oath of office.

In the interim, I will continue to work as hard as ever representing the people of my district in the City Council.

Stay tuned.

See the judge’s written decision after the jump.