SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

Source: BrokenSphere via WIkimedia Commons

Styrofoam is perhaps one of the most space-aged products mankind has ever invented. But, though the stuff is soft, lightweight and relatively durable, its also a dangerous environmental hazard. Because of this, the Sanitation Department is looking for a city-wide ban on the product, according to a report by DNA Info.

The legislation being proposed would place the focus of the ban on businesses and not consumers.

“This would not be something that the consumer would have to deal with,” said deputy commissioner for recycling and sustainability Ron Gonen, “From a pure dollars-and-cents standpoint, it costs us money to dispose of Styrofoam in a landfill. It’s also unhealthy for the environment. It doesn’t break down properly.”

Instead, the ban would fine or heavily tax businesses that continue to order and distribute Styrofoam in large quantities, forcing them to find more environmentally favorable alternatives.

“We’re either going to ban your product or packaging, or make you pay to have it sent to a landfill,” Gonen said.

Councilman Lew Fidler, who had expressed support for a ban in the past, reaffirmed his support for the new ban proposal.

“I would love to move this bill forward, as it would be a help to both our environment and to our businesses through tax incentives,” Fidler said in a released statement.

I know, I know. We harp enough about garbage problems in Sheepshead Bay. But I just took a walk down Sheepshead Bay Road, and what I saw was particularly galling.

Just about every public garbage can on Sheepshead Bay Road looks like the one above, or worse. Containers and bags sit around them, and some even have planks of wood or sheets of metal and plastic near them.

As Hurricane Sandy passes through, the area is expected to see gale force winds, meaning all of these objects may get launched like a rocket into the air, potentially injuring anyone unlucky enough to be in their way, or posing a threat to glass storefronts and parked cars.

Meanwhile, the city is emphatically reminding us to tie down objects in our yards.

Anyone else see a problem here?

Joe Reisman, real life superhero.

Local Sanitation workers, the head of Community Board 15 and Sheepshead Bites’ own tax columnist, Joseph Reisman, all went above and beyond the call of duty on Friday, mobilizing to secure hundreds of documents containing names, addresses, Social Security numbers, bank account information and other information coveted by identity thieves that were accidentally strewn across a busy Sheepshead Bay intersection.

The incident was sparked by a tip sent to us by Sheepshead Bites reader Penny, who informed us at approximatly 6:00 p.m. on Friday that hundreds of papers were blowing in the wind on Avenue Z, between East 16th Street and East 17th Street. Upon closer inspection, Penny wrote, the papers were tax records from a local accountant, and contained some of the most sensitive private information about clients – the kind of info that makes ID thieves drool.

We checked it out, and, indeed, it appeared hundreds, if not thousands, of individual’s identities were at risk.

First, we called the accountant listed on the papers, and even knocked on his office door. But no one was in.

Then we called our own tax guru, Reisman, to see if there was a city or state agency able to respond and quickly clean up the mess and possibly notify the accountant and his clients. Reisman wasn’t aware of any, and advised us to call the city.

We then called 311, but the uniqueness of the complaint baffled operators. After being transferred around a couple of times, an operator said all they could do was file a complaint, and, in time, the Sanitation Department would dispatch someone to check out the location and issue the accountant a fine for littering. However, it wasn’t clear if they could get someone to the location within 24 hours.

That wasn’t good enough. With so much personal information so easily accessible to passers-by, we knew every second it remained on the street, people’s credit and identities remained at risk.

Keep reading to find out what happened next.

Source: pubadvocate.nyc.gov

Several local businesses routinely express frustration to Sheepshead Bites about the number of fines the city has doled out, whether it be for trash, health inspections or obscure signage regulations. And, according to the complaints we get, it seems inspectors of businesses are unfamiliar with many of the regulations and sometimes apply them inconsistently.

But though it may seem like the city is cracking down and issuing more fines as the city struggles with the economic recession, data on the number of fines given out has been hard to come by.

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio is trying to fix that. He has announced his plans to sue Mayor Michael Bloomberg and city agencies in order to force them to reveal information regarding the amount of fines given, and the income generated from those fines.

Currently, there are 20 agencies involved in small businesses-related regulations. According to an analysis performed by de Blasio’s office, cited by the New York Times, fines collected by these organizations have jumped from $485 million in the 2002 fiscal year, when Bloomberg was elected, to a whopping $820 million in this past fiscal year.

De Blasio told the paper that he has been pushing six of the offices involved in regulating small businesses to release information about these fines for several months now. He said that the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Department of Consumer Affairs told him they were in the process of compiling a response. The Transportation Department, Sanitation Department, Buildings Department and Finance Department failed to reply to his requests.

“We’re just not going to stand for it anymore,” de Blasio told the paper.

Marc LaVorgna, Bloomberg’s spokespman said the city will respond to de Blasio and provide this information soon. He argued that the main source of rise in fines over the past 10 years is driving tickets. The fines have increased for parking tickets and moving violations, while more tickets for running red lights have been distributed, as the city installed more cameras by traffic lights.

Source: Department of Sanitation

Garbage Gazette: Following our report of garbage being left along Sheepshead Bay Road by Sanitation Department workers – who emptied some trash bins, left others, and failed to clean any of the areas around the cans – a second cleaning was done yesterday.

The Sanitation Department responded to one of our readers’ concerns by notifying them of the follow-up cleaning yesterday morning, even sending photos to prove the deed was done. The department’s customer service team also noted that the Borough Chief is reviewing the servicing of baskets in our area.

We’ve also heard whispers that the local garage – which no longer has a basket pickup truck or a power washer of its own – will be borrowing a power washer to scrub the sidewalks along the commercial strip. We are awaiting confirmation from the Sanitation Department.

One of the EMPTIED cans underneath the Sheepshead Bay Road station remains surrounded by trash.

Garbage Gazette: It’s been a while since we’ve had a Garbage Gazette, but it’s certainly not because there hasn’t been anything to write about. Our local Sanitation Department garage continues to leave a mess in its trail – we just got tired of harping on it. The condition of Sheepshead Bay Road today, though, definitely warrants it.

You see, early this morning, Sanitation workers crept up Sheepshead Bay Road, supposedly emptying garbage cans and cleaning the area around them – fulfilling their job description. Or did they? When we wandered down the road this morning, what we found was that they only emptied every other can, leaving several spots with cans overflowing with garbage and debris. At the locations that they did pick up they left the surrounding areas untouched, and they remain piled with putrid filth.

What we also found is that claims the Sanitation Department has used in the past to excuse its negligence are patently false.

Keep reading for photos, and find out why the Sanitation Department is full of it.

Just a reminder: The Manhattan Beach Community Group, in collaboration with several other Southern Brooklyn civic associations, will be hosting a town hall meeting tomorrow at 8 p.m. at P.S. 195 (131 Irwin Street). The group is bringing together residents, local politicians and representatives from several relevant agencies to discuss the problems Southern Brooklyn faced during the December 26 blizzard, and seeking solutions to ensure that our area will not be neglected in the future.

Though most residential neighborhoods across all five boroughs faced challenges, Sheepshead Bay and Southern Brooklyn communities were hit the hardest and left for the longest. This meeting, open to the public, is your opportunity to be heard by local authorities. Residents will be permitted to make statements about their experiences.

Also, the Brooklyn Delegation of City Council meetings will be holding a hearing earlier in the day at Brooklyn Borough Hall. Residents can provide feedback on the city’s management of the blizzard. It is one of six public borough-based hearings over the next two weeks. The meeting kicks off at 6 p.m. at 209 Joralemon Street at Court Street.

The second – and last – Brooklyn-based City Council meeting on the blizzard will be hosted in Southern Brooklyn, at I.S. 278 (Marine Park Junior High School) at 1925 Stuart Street.

A slew of community groups are taking aim at officials that they consider responsible for the city’s bungled cleanup efforts after the blizzard, hoping to hold their feet to the fire.

The Manhattan Beach Community Group has cobbled together a coalition of Southern Brooklyn neighborhood associations and is inviting local officials to a forum on January 19. The groups are demanding explanations for why buses and trains were out of commission and streets were not plowed in the days after the blizzard.

The groups mean business: if a citywide official fails to attend or send a representative, an empty chair will be placed on the stage with a sign bearing the official’s name.

“We’re going to have the empty chairs because enough is enough. They get to park wherever they want, they get cars, they get cell phones. But when you need them, they’re nowhere to be found,” said MBCG President Ira Zalcman.

Keep reading about the forum, and find out who will – and won’t – be there.