"Worn Out By Horrendous Development Greed": A Reader Writes To PMFA Regarding Hannah Senesh Expansion

From Pardon Me For Asking's mail box:

Dear Katia,

So many of the critical Atlantic Yards actions through the long years of our opposition have come at times when people are otherwise engaged, that I have to assume that De Blasio read the playbook and assumed holiday distractions would keep people from paying attention.

This is NOT to be trusted...please suggest what we can do. If this proposal is allowed to happen, other such travesties will follow and the entire nature of our historic low-rise communities will evaporate.

For eight classrooms, they will alter the streetscape FOREVER...or is this just another ruse by developers...as they pulled off on 16th Street...connecting a development to a religious purpose and then after they got all sorts of waivers and privileges, changed the entire situation at the last moment, actually believing that no one would notice?

So worn out by such horrendous development greed,
Phyllis Wrynn

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Will Bill And Brad Attend Hannah Senesh's 'Brief' Meeting About Expansion Into Publicly Owned Courtyard?

To enlarge, click here

Thank you to the blog McBrooklyn for the great piece about the Hannah Senesh Day School expansion controversy and for revealing the fact that in 2008, the private school paid Attorney Kenneth Fisher** to lobby the Brooklyn Office Of City Planning, Office Of The Brooklyn Borough President, the New York City Council, the Office Of The Mayor and the Department of Transportation for the "Acquisition Of a Lot Currently Owned By The City Of New York."

**Fisher, you may remember, represented the developers of the Dock Street/Brooklyn Bridge/school development project.


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Will Bill And Brad Attend Hannah Senesh's 'Brief' Meeting About Expansion Into Publicly Owned Courtyard?

Councilman 'Dollar Bill' De Blasio's Underhanded Move To Amend A 150-Year Old Law Angers Many In Carroll Gardens

Breaking News! On His Way Out, Councilman Bill De Blasio Sticks It To Carroll Gardens

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No Listing Announcement, But Lots Of Science (Sans Politics) At EPA's Informational Meeting Regarding Gowanus Canal

Team EPA Region 2

Walter Mugdan, EPA District 2 Director

Christos Tsiamis, Remedial Project Manager for the Gowanus Canal

Natalie Loney, EPA Community Involvement Coordinator

If many in the audience at P.S. 32 last night thought that the EPA was going to make a statement on whether the federal agency would list the Gowanus Canal as a Superfund site, no such announcement was made.
Right from the start, Walter Mugdan, EPA Region 2 Director, stated that there would be " no Aha! moment tonight. Instead, we will talk about the work already going on."

And for the first time, the community was able to listen to EPA's Region Two Team talk science and field work in regards to the heavily polluted Gowanus Canal without Mayor Bloomberg's politics muddying the water. And what a pleasure it was.

Regardless of the fact that the canal has not been listed yet, Mugdan explained that his team has the money and the legal authority without the listing to proceed with work "up to the step before placing a shovel into the ground." He added: "No one has asked us to stand down or slow down. The goal is to get the work going as quickly as possible."

Christos Tsiamis, Remedial Project Manager, gave a thorough presentation on the work currently underway and the various steps in the scientific field work which will be performed in the next few months.
Though much data already exists on the canal, the EPA will conduct further tests to evaluate human risk and the effects of the pollution on wildlife.
The field activity will include:

*A Bathymetric survey (measuring the various depths of the canal)

*Surface sediment sampling (EPA will sample the top 6 feet of the 10-12 feet of industrial sediment)

*Surface water sampling

*Air sampling

*Fish and crab sampling

*Sediment core sampling

*Sampling of CSOs and other outfalls ( measuring the contamination from the city's combined sewer overflow into the canal as well as determining the origin of over 200 pipes that lead into the canal)

*Groundwater sampling and water level measurements

Mr. Tsiamis concluded by saying that he had come to this country to study, had stayed and made New York City his home and sees his work on the Gowanus "as an opportunity to give back." As a public servant, he has the community's interest in mind. "We take this work very seriously."

Natalie Loney, Community Involvement Coordinator, gave information on the Community Advisory Group (CAG), a public forum for community members to present and discuss their needs and concerns related to the Superfund decision-making process. She also briefly discussed the difference between the Technical Assistance Grants (Tag) and the Technical Assistance Service For Communities (TASK) which both provide technical assistance and education to the community to explain and interpret EPA's reports, site conditions and proposed clean-up decisions.

During the presentation, the audience listened intently. It was clear from the questions directed at the EPA staff, that the community had done its homework and was amazingly well informed.
I would venture to say that most in the audience were firmly behind the agency's listing of the Gowanus Canal as a Superfund site. If there were any nay-sayers in the crowd, they did not speak up last night.

Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez who was one of the first politicians to come out in support of the listing, receives a thunderous round of applause, when she said that this needs to be a transparent process. Later, when the merits of New York City's "modified Alternative Superfund Plan" were discussed, Nydia stated in no uncertain terms that the city did not have the money to undertake any thorough clean-up.

State Senator Velmanette Montgomery, who also was an early supporter of the Superfund listing, expressed her complete confidence in the EPA and was cheered by the crowd.

Ultimately, it is up to the EPA's headquarter in Washington to make the final decision. One thing is for certain: there is ample scientific evidence that the Gowanus canal should be listed.
It remains to be seen if Mayor Bloomberg's politics and shameless lobbying against the Superfund designation will pollute what should be a scientific decision.

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Santa Seen Taking A Morning Stroll Through Prospect Park

Santa seemed lost in thought
on this very sunny and warm morning in December,
as he was taking a stroll through Prospect Park.

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Will Bill And Brad Attend Hannah Senesh's 'Brief' Meeting About Expansion Into Publicly Owned Courtyard?

It's Not A Parking Lot, It's A Publicly Owned Court Yard

Fliers were distributed along First Place by the Hannah Senesh Day School on Thursday, inviting residents to a 'brief' meeting to discuss the school's expansion plan into "the parking area"on the corner of First Place and Smith Street.

The "parking area" is actually city owned and protected by a 150-year-old law, which states that the unique wide gardens of the neighborhood's Place blocks can not be built on or used for parking.

That doesn't seem to be a problem if you have out-going Councilman De Blasio on your side.

Without first discussing it with the community, De Blasio will introducing a change in the Administrative Code at the City Council on December 9th. The change would amend the old law by excluding the corner of Smith Street and First Place.
Hannah Senesh will then negotiate with the city to buy the publicly owned land for a token sum ( $1 has been suggested) and build a two story extension.

That, dear Carroll Gardeners, would be a precedent that will have huge repercussions. Where there is one exemption to the law, there easily could be two, or three.

I certainly expect Bill de Blasio to attend the Monday meeting at Hannah Senesh. He owes this community a clear explanation for this blatant abuse of power.

And I hope that Councilman-elect Brad Landers can attend as well. According to
Tom Gray of De Blasio's office, Brad has been "in the loop" . After all, the land purchase from the city will happen during his term.

This backroom deal has understandably angered many in Carroll Gardens.
It remains to be seen if a 'brief' meeting will suffice.

For those who are interested, below is the text of the old Brooklyn law restricting the use of the Carroll Gardens courtyards from the blog Carroll Gardens Brooklyn History

The NYC Administrative Codes that protect the courtyards are:
Code §19-132 Restrictions on First Place, Second Place, Third Place and Fourth Place in the borough of Brooklyn. The buildings to be erected upon the lots fronting upon First place, Second place, Third place and Fourth place in the borough of Brooklyn, shall be built on a line thirty-three feet five inches and a quarter of an inch back from the sides or lines of such places as they are now established by the map of the city, and the intervening space of land shall be used for courtyards only.

Code§19-136(b) Obstructions: It shall be unlawful for any person, directly or indirectly, to use any portion of a sidewalk or courtyard, established by law, between the building line and the curb line for the parking, storage, display or sale of motor vehicles.

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Councilman 'Dollar Bill' De Blasio's Underhanded Move To Amend A 150-Year Old Law Angers Many In Carroll Gardens

Carroll Gardeners are fuming.

Just weeks before leaving the City Council to become NYC Advocate, Councilman Bill De Blasio gave the neighborhood the finger by announcing that on December 9th, he will introduce a change in the Administrative Code that would amend the 150-year old law protecting Carroll Gardens' unique court yards.

The change would chip away at the law by exempting the corner of Smith Street and First Place, where Hannah Senesh, a private school, wants to use the court yard to build onto their existing building.

Hannah Senesh just moved to the location 2 years ago, but is claiming that it has already outgrown its current space.

The school has hired former Council Member and Attorney Ken Fisher to represent them. (Fisher, you may remember, represented the developers of the Dock Street/Brooklyn Bridge/school development project.)

The Carroll Gardens Community has fought for years to protect the neighborhood's wide front gardens. Just in 2008, the Wide Street Text Amendment was passed by the City Council, establishing once and for all that building and parking on the courtyards was forbidden.

Bill De Blasio's underhanded move would undermine all the efforts of the community which has worked so hard to protect the neighborhood. It is also completely contrary to the recently passed Text Amendment and re-zoning of the neighborhood.

Below is a statement on the issue from Maria Pagano, President of the Carroll Gardens Neighborhood Association.:

Hi All, Yesterday afternoon Tom Gray and the Hannah Senesh Board invited community members to a presentation of their plans to expand the school into the side yard (aka, front garden) at the Hannah Senesh Community Day School. The plan will extend the existing first and second floors of the building to the lot line at the fence along First Place and Smith Streets.
Ken Fisher, legal counsel for Hannah Senesh, explained that the school has made all the necessary applications to move forward with their plan, which will add approximately 8 classrooms to the existing building. The project will add a solid two story extension for the length of the building and width of the front garden. It will be faced to match the main building.
Mr. Fisher stated that this plan and the necessary changes required in the new zoning will not apply to any other site in Carroll Gardens. It was announced that City Councilman Bill DeBlasio will present this project to the City Council next week for the first phase of the necessary approvals.

We at the CGNA are concerned that this extension will not only challenge but eliminate the sight lines and streetscape standards established by the new zoning and the text amendment so recently passed. FYI- more to follow.
Best, Maria

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Best Comment of The Day: Councilman De Blasio Gives "The Bird" To Entire Community

Anonymous has left the following comment on the post "Breaking News! On His Way Out, Councilman Bill De Blasio Sticks It To Carroll Gardens:

No matter who wants to use a courtyard like this in CG, a school or anyone else in Carroll Gardens, this is just plain wrong, wrong wrong.

No else is allowed to do this and Hannah Senesh should admit their admit their idea is a terrible one for Carroll Gardens.

The Courtyards are PUBLIC property and the City saying they will give away one of them for one dollar should put that courtyard on the auction block becaue I want it for 2 dollars!

As for Mr. DeBlasio he has just given the "bird" to an entire community of devoted and tireless citizens he supposedly "worked" with for years.

This more than anything that comes out of his mouth or is printed on his hypocritical webpage should tell the rest of New Yorkers to hang on to their public propeties because unforuntaley here comes a thief and a liar if there ever was one.

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