Meeting in session. Photo by George Fiala.
The Red Hook Civic Association met on September 26 in the teacher’s cafeteria of PS 15. There were plenty of new faces around the tables, as well as the 76th Precinct Neighborhood Coordination Officers (NCO). The following topics were discussed, under the aegis co-president John McGettrick.
Roundtable discussion with 76th Precinct Officers:
Illegal garbage dumping
An attendee brought up to local law enforcement the problem with people dumping “large, random” piles of garbage on Creamer Street (between Otsego and Columbia Streets) at night and on the weekends. NCO Krystal Class said she and her partner Vegnel Jovin would take a look into the matter.
Ron Kyle, of Dry Dock Wines and Spirits, complained about the 53-foot trailers on the streets, as they are a big and dangerous issue in the neighborhood. New York City has a 55-foot limit (including the cab) on tractor-trailers that is never enforced, as some pointed out.
“It’s really become an obstacle course now with construction at almost every other block,” he said. “Just today there was almost an accident with the trucks backing up all the way from Van Dyke Street down to Fairway.”
NCO Jonathan Rueda said NYPD doesn’t really enforce large trucks; rather that is New York State Department of Transportation’s area. But he reassured residents they will definitely keep an eye out for the trailers, and will contact the state DOT to see if they can have enforcement.
McGettrick suggested that summonses should be issued anyway.
Charter Buses
Kyle also complained about charter buses parked on Bay Street for weeks at a time. Rueda said it’s hard for them to tow buses, and that those buses are not supposed to be parked overnight due to street cleaning rules. He will make sure they are ticketed whenever possible.
Cement trucks’ excess product
A Red Hooker named Scott said cement trucks leave a line of their product on Clinton and Bay Streets, assuming because the trucks are overfilled. As a result the cement hardens and changes the exterior of the road, making the road treacherous. As a bicyle rider, he seemed especially vulnerable. He suggested that tickets be issued.
“The evidence just doesn’t disappear; it hardens and stays there for some time,” he said.
The NCO officers said they would look into that further.
Giant Warehouse Woes and Related Truck Traffic:
Three giant warehouses will soon make their appearance in Red Hook, McGettrick announced. One is just north of the BASIS School, where the old dye factory, on the site of the old dye factory, another just south of BASIS, next to IKEA, and the third at the old White Rock/Snapple building, which will be torn down and rebuilt as a state-of-the art UPS. McGettrick said that the million square feet of new warehousing will create tons more truck traffic, along with the accompanying air pollution.
“I would assume that the new sites on Columbia Street may well have to do environmental testing and cleanings,” McGettrick said. “So we’re probably looking at a year to two-and-a-half years down the road when something is actually opening.”
Draft BQX Proposal:
Major real estate developers, who are envisioning the equivalent of Battery Park City coming to Brooklyn, like the concept of a trolley service (better known as the Brooklyn Queens Connector, or BQX, streetcar project) and are pushing to keep Red Hook in the mix, according to McGettrick. This especially comes after Sunset Park – who was initially included in the project – was deleted entirely from the proposed route after much opposition from Sunset Parkers. McGettrick said the suggested streetcar route in Red Hook would be a certain segment of Van Brunt Street, with stops reportedly being half a mile between each other on the 11-mile route. He also explained that if this is the case, that would mean parking on both sides would be removed and there would be no need for a bus service. Additionally, taxes of the properties adjacent to the trolley would increase to help defray the cost of the trolley.
He suggested instead that maybe the community could ask for a minor, truncated version of that streetcar, and push for a more practical, economical, faster bus through the Hugh L. Carey tunnel to Manhattan. McGettrick said that’s still in the process of being looked at by the MTA, and said that he would continue to monitor the situation.
Red Hook businessman George Fiala made the point that the Red Hook Initiative is a major supporter of the BQX, and that perhaps someone should talk to them and let them know how the rest of the neighborhood feels.
Flood Resiliency Status:
“Maybe in this century we might get a study that’s completed and something gets done,” McGettrick told the room to kick start the conversation about flood resiliency.
Plan development is still in the works, though the upcoming sixth anniversary of Superstorm Sandy approaches. McGettrick said FEMA did approve the draft proposal for flood detection, with $12 million being allocated for a full-blown implementation plan. Additionally the drainage study is still underway and claims to be only a few months behind schedule. McGettrick explained that if that study is completed, then the temporary barriers that are currently located on Beard Street could be extended to the areas of greatest flooding – primarily the Pioneer Street area and around Atlantic Basin.
Street Renaming Updates:
The application to rename a portion of Van Brunt Street, between King and Sullivan Streets, as Sue Amendola Way was approved and the renaming ceremony took place on Saturday, September 29. Annette Amendola, Sue’s sister, expressed her appreciation and gratitude on behalf of her family at the Civic Association meeting beforehand.
“I just want to thank everybody that voted and signed a petition,” she told the room. “My sister would be very happy that this street be done in her name, I think.”
Sue, who passed away in 2017, was a big part of the neighborhood’s heart and soul for more than 70 years. She was an active supporter of many local groups, including the Red Hook Civic Association, VFW NY Post 5195 and Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church. Resident Ron Kyle started a petition online in March 2018, and it got 429 e-supporters before being passed onto Community Board 6 and Council Member Carlos Menchaca.
The other street renaming that could become a reality in the future would be in remembrance of Morris Johnson. The hope is that a section of Wolcott Street, where he lived for a long time after living in the Red Hook Houses, would be the best spot. McGettrick said petitions for this will be circulated moving forward.
Thor Equities Site:
While cleanup at the 7.7-acre site at 270-280 Richards Street was supposed to have begun already, that is expected to start in the beginning of November. Thor Equities, which purchased the site for $40 million in 2005, have started to move some materials out.
“The question is whether they’re grinding [the materials] down and saying it looks like good stuff, or if they’re supposed to take it away,” McGettrick said.
He also said that the Civic Association has asked the Department of Environmental Protection and Council Member Menchaca to look into the matter. The site is slated to become a waterfront complex for office and retail development.
Mark your calendar for the “Sandy” Remembrance Parade:
The Fifth Annual “Sandy” Remembrance Parade – AKA the Barnacle Parade – will be held on Monday, October 29, at 4 pm. The kick-off point will be at the corner of Pioneer and Van Brunt Streets. It will go down towards the waterfront and back, and should take about 45 minutes from start-to-finish. While it serves as a remembrance of what the neighborhood dealt with during Superstorm Sandy and how residents overcame it afterward, it’s almost like a “pre-Halloween party for the kids” as well, according to McGettrick. As always there are sure to be floats, live music, and adults, children and dogs in festive costumes.
Other news:
King Street lot
Annette Amendola asked McGettrick about the lot on King Street. She had understood that someone bought that property from the people that wanted to build the Oxford Nursing Home on that site, and that townhouses could be built there instead. McGettrick responded that he has heard that people who develop high-end townhouses did so, but they would have to conform to zoning in order to move forward.
“Subsequently they would have to apply for a variance, but – given the size of the lot – they would probably be looking for a zoning change,” he explained. “So that’s not going to happen immediately, even with a variance. It would take a year-and-a-half to two years if they were to get it.”
BQE
The Brooklyn Heights Promenade could be closed for a minimum of five years, beginning in 2021, while the city reconstructs a 1.5-mile stretch of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. McGettrick explained that the closure and reconstruction could take between five and six-and-a-half years, if the promenade’s completely closed. This would be a faster process compared to the six-and-a-half to seven years it could take if construction is done one lane at a time. Either way, Red Hook and other neighborhoods would be gridlocked with vehicular traffic.
Police-Neighborhood Meetings:
Officer Rueda announced that the 76th Precinct will be having their next Community Council meeting on Wednesday, October 3. It will be at 7:30 pm at the precinct, located at 191 Union Street.
NYPD’s “Build the Block” program holds meetings four times a year, where residents meet with their sector’s NCOs to talk about neighborhood safety and to make sure concerns are heard and questions are answered. Officers Class and Jovin, who cover Sector C of the 76th Precinct, announced that the next and final one for the 2018 calendar year will be held on Wednesday, December 12. It will take place at 6:30 pm at the Red Hook Library (7 Wolcott Street). They said flyers and email blasts will be coming out soon for more details and information. Officer Rueda, who covers Sector D with NCO Damien Clarke, said his “Build the Block” meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 24, at 6:30 pm at the Red Hook Senior Center (120 W. 9th Street).
