Though the city says the bike path is complete, bikers now ride on the Belt Parkway because the path is unusable.

In addition to the statements Congressman Anthony Weiner gave, there were two things worth noting on Plumb Beach yesterday, both of which indicate the city is ignoring problems in the area and creating a dangerous situation.

First is that the Parks Department has declared reconstruction work on the Plumb Beach bike path complete. However, any visitor would agree that it’s hardly the case.

On Monday, the city signed off on the contractor’s work to restore the crumbled bike path, which fell to the waters in November. They have removed the fencing and are now saying the path is open, according to Community Board 15 Chairperson Theresa Scavo. However, they have not repaved the path, or put anything more than a bit of gravel (which has mostly been swept away) and packed down the sand.

On our visit yesterday, we watched about a dozen bikers hit the sand trap. Many got off their bikes and carried it the 300 feet to where pavement begins again.

Most bikers, though, took a far more dangerous route. They exited the greenway entirely at a break in the railing adjacent to where the destruction begins and rode their bike on the Belt Parkway. At times, bikers in different directions passed each other, forcing some into the path of oncoming cars. This is a dangerous situation for bikers and drivers alike.

The other thing of note is the current state of the beach before the storm. We wanted to get photos of the conditions before Earl so we can compare it after the storm. The findings themselves are hardly surprising, considering how much we harp on the inaction and lack of attention the issue is getting – Plumb Beach is a mess, and waters at high-tide readily flow over the minimal sandbags in place.

That, in light of the city saying work on the beach is done, is a catastrophic neglect.

With Hurricane Earl on its way the city should be adding more sandbags – and boulders – to break the waters and prevent it from reaching the thin strip of sand once called a bike path. Instead, as you can see in our photos below, the sandbags that are there are being pulled out to sea and provide little protection to the Belt Parkway.

Only a fool would call this an acceptable move. By declaring the work complete, the city has made clear it has no intention of restoring the area or protecting the bike path. They think – correctly, in all likelihood – that rebuilding a bike path would be wasteful, since it stands to be destroyed this hurricane season. True as that may be, shrugging off the problem and waiting for the destruction to reach the Belt Parkway is not an alternative.

Plumb Beach is our first protection for the most valuable infrastructural asset in Southern Brooklyn – and for the homes beyond it. For the city to sit by and watch the show of destruction highlights their wreckless disregard for the neighborhood’s residents and the malignant impotence of the city’s agencies.

Here are the photos showing the current conditions of the worst parts of Plumb Beach:

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  • Anonymous

    “Malignant impotence”? Damn, you’re good!


  • Eddie Green

    Who are the decision makers?

    does anyone have name?

    or agencies?

    Who is the person or are the people that decide all this?


  • Leto

    New York is becoming very unhealthy place to live. Instead of enforcing and setting some laws to fine people for littering, police is catching youngsters who drink beer. Look around you, how much garbage is around. Go to some bird refuge areas, it’s a shame.

    Many young people I know are planning to get out of NYC.

    But hold instead of spending on kids/young to have nice clean areas to play do sports, and enjoy nature lets build a Mosque. The question is how much do you pay a Jew billionaire to agree to this monstrosity.


    • J.P. Zenger

      I was wondering how long it would take to mention that the billionaire is a Jew. Yes he is a Jew. How about that he is a short billionaire. I personally feel that his height is his problem, not being a Jew. Genetically brains travel in chromosomes. That is where he gets his brains from. Luck is also an issue. I would rather hire a lucky person than a smart person.


  • Bugg

    DOT has been a mess under Mrs. Charles Schumer and now under Ms. Khan(KHAN!-cue Ricardo Montablan and James Shatner here).Instead it’s priorities seem to be painting silly traffic lanes that congest traffic and filling midtown streets with lawn furniture. And that Mau Mau Island project-was there anyone who gave a shit about that?

    It wouldn’t cost much to simply cover that sand path with asphalt and to add some sand and plant some cheap seagrasses to encourage dune growth. Those things would cost little and take a few days at most. But it won’t happen. As of right now the path is impassable to bike riders unless you get off and walk about 150 yards in sand. And the sand that accumulates there is never removed. It will take losing the eastbound Belt Parkway before the DOT wakes up. Instead they spend time and money rebuilding and removing bridges the length of the Belt. But if the eastbound lanes wash out at Plumb Beach-a very real possbility with this storm or some other in the future-all the other work will be pointless.


  • http://www.njluxurymotors.com Arthur Borko

    I can’t believe I’m correcting this. It’s James T. Kirk played by William “Denny Crane” Shatner, not James Shatner….


  • Eitan

    When I participated in the Brooklyn Epic Bike Ride earlier this summer we encountered the unfinished, sand trap part of the bike path here, and everyone had to get off and either walk or carry the bikes. Not a catastrophe, but certainly not what you would call ‘finished work’.

    This is a disgrace. We’re not some dumb ol town, or a third world country, this is New York City. Many people who live here enjoy biking for recreation and sport. Many of us like to bike with our children. We accepted it then because the place was obviously still in a state of repair. To pack up and call it finished is more than disappointing, its a smack in the face to all those who enjoy the outdoors and like to bring themselves and their families to this part of brooklyn on bike.


    • J.P. Zenger

      Additionally, there are about 100 people who use their bikes and the path to go to work. Same on Congressman Weiner, Shame on Gateway, Same on all those who are supposed to be in charge.


  • Anonymous

    Nero fiddled while Rome burned comes to mind.


  • http://www.flickr.com/photos/lisanne001 Lisanne!

    DOT has always been a mess. Trust me.

    I think BrooklynBus (who is far more expert than I am) will back me up on that.

    I can’t ever recall them having their act together.


  • brightonresident

    Its more of a “malignant impotance” of our local elected officials- Kruger, Nelson, Fidler, to name a few, who have down little or nothing to get this area repaired! The agencies answer to them and they should answer to us!!! So we all know what to do as election season approaches!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


  • http://www.nedberke.com Ned Berke

    Can you think of a more appropriate description?


  • Bugg

    As a non-Trekkie, understandably confused. “Wrath of Khan” was the only good Trekkie movie.And William Shatner’s recent interview shows are suprisingly good. Also, he’s scheduled to star in a CBS sitcom called “Shit My Dad Says”, and he’s trying to keep the naughty word in the title.

    No matter-the point stands. Seems based on this AM’s bike ride no real damage so far, though Riis Park seems to be experiencing beach erosion to it’s western end. Forecast is for this to be mostly well east of LI. Still, one bad noreaster and the right lane of the Belt by Plum Beach will be better suited for surfcasting than vehicle traffic. And no elected official on any level has done anything to correc this obvious long-term problem.


  • BrooklynBus

    I have only criticized them since Mrs. Schumer and Khan took over. Before that they were a decent agency or I was too dumb to realize otherwise.

    A larger question here is whose jurisdiction is this? DOT, Parks, or the Feds? Isn’t Plumb Beach part of the Gateway National Recreation area?


    • J.P. Zenger

      As a regular at Plumb beach, and having to call the police several times, they want no part of it. The boundaries are, and this has been denied, depending on who you speak to, the parking lot belongs to NYC, so that NYC cops can pull peoople over to ticket them, and don’t forget to hide there, like preditators. The rest belongs to Gateway National Park. U.S.Park Police. And don’t call them unless you want them to harrass you.


  • http://www.nedberke.com Ned Berke

    The issue of jurisdiction has been addressed several times on this site. It is the foremost reason why there has been no action taken. The sands and waters are fed. The greenway, bike path and highway are handled by different city and state agencies. And so everyone points the finger at everyone else.


    • J.P. Zenger

      Well done. I am surprised that we have not met there.


  • RockNRoll

    It is sad how they spend money on sand bags when they can take other measures to help Plumb. I remember when there these huge dunes there many moons ago. I always biked there. It was a great place to be at one time. Unfortunately, some city officials are finding other things to tackle.

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