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Turf Wars
April 18th, 2007

There are 73 artificial turf athletic fields in New York City parks and there are plans to spend $150 million to convert another 100 grass fields to turf in the coming years.

While the synthetic material solves the problem of overuse of limited green space in the city - which turns many fields into patches of dirt and rocks — the move has set off a debate about safety.

Some argue that turf is harder on human bodies than grass (see illustration of “turf toe”, which the NYU Medical Center describes as a “sprain at the base of a big toe” caused by impact with artificial grass.).

Others question how the fake grass will hold up over time. “What happens if someone spills something on the artificial turf?” one New York blogger asks. “The gum, or whatever it is, will stay stuck in it. I wouldn’t want to play on a field that looked like the bottom of a subway track.”

Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum has called for an independent testing of rubber pellets that she believes may contain cancer-causing materials and pose serious health risks to New Yorkers; the Parks Department has refused to do the testing.

The group New Yorkers for Parks has issued a report on the topic (available in .pdf format) and writes that “important environmental benefits of natural turf, such as its ability to absorb and filter rainwater and pollutants, and to decrease the impact of the urban heat island effect, must be considered in the debate.”

To view a map of synthetic athletic fields in NYC, click here.

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 18, 2007, 7:54 am
In category: Environment, Health, Parks | No Comments »

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What Theyre Saying This Morning
April 18th, 2007

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn took exceptionwith arecent editorial in the Daily News that claimed that her efforts to regulate pedicabs was a favor to a friend and lobbyist, Emily Giske. Today, the editorial page clears the record. The speaker and the lobbyist concur that they have never spoken about this piece of legislation and that, truth be told, Giske does not even represent the taxi industry, the paper writes.We take them at their word.

The New York Sun calls on Governor Eliot Spitzer to rethink the Javitz Convention Center plan.

And the New York Post blasts a school teacher who took his class on trip to Cuba and all those “American lefties [who] remain nostalgic for Stalinist despotism.”

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 18, 2007, 7:12 am
In category: Gotham City | No Comments »

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Methadone for Political Junkies
April 17th, 2007

2007 promises to be a lean year for campaign aficionados with few opportunities for electioneering or voting. But there will be some action albeit sparse between now and the presidential primary, slated for February 5, 2008.

First up on Tuesday, April 24 is the special election to fill the seat from the 40th City Council district, vacated seemingly decades ago when Councilmember Yvette Clarke won election to Congress. Mathieu Eugene, who won a February special election but then called for a revote after he ran into questions about when and if he lived in the Central Brooklyn district, is one the ballot. Following ballot challenges and election fatigue, his one surviving opponent is Harry Schiffman, who ran in February but finished back in the pack.

Later in the spring an election seems likely to fill the Manhattan State Assembly seat previously held by Peter Grannis, who resigned to become state environmental commissioner. Governor Eliot Spitzer is supposed to set date for the election but at last report had not done so. Maybe hes as fed up with special elections as the rest of us. If and when this ones called, Micah Kellner appears all but certain to be the anointed Democratic candidate, giving him a healthy leg up at the polls.

And what about the rest of the year? On Room Eight, Jerry Skurnik has compiled a list of contests coming up in the next seven months. It includes a number of judgeships the district attorneys of the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island and two City Council seats vacated since the 2006 elections one on Staten Island where Vincent Ignizio won a February special election and the other, you guessed it, in Brooklyns 40th.

By Gail Robinson on April 17, 2007, 3:05 pm
In category: Albany, Electoral Politics, Gotham City, Governing | 4 Comments »

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Tuesday's NYC Editorials
April 17th, 2007

The New York Times reflects on new Census data which finds that nearly 37 million Americans– 12.6 percent of the population — live in poverty.

The Daily News revisits the issue of Ground Zero workers and health, a topic that earned the paper a Pulitzer Prize this year.

Newsday calls on legislators in Albany to reform campaign finance and redistricting laws.

And the New York Sun marks the 100th anniversary of Ellis Island’s busiest day, “recalling the contributions made by those who passed through those golden doors.” And on tax day, the paper laments that the richest 1 percent of New Yorkers pay 22 percent of state taxes.

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 17, 2007, 6:06 am
In category: Gotham City | No Comments »

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The Pulitzers and NYC
April 16th, 2007

Local honors in the 2007 Pulitzer Prizes:

Andrea Elliott of The New York Timeswon the feature writing award for her profiles of a Brooklyn imam.

Arthur Browne, Beverly Weintraub and Heidi Evans of the New York Daily News received the editorial writing award for their work on behalf of Ground Zero workers experiencing health problems.

Walt Handelsman of Newsday won for his cartoons.

And although it is not really a local paper, the Wall Street Journal won the public service award for its investigation into backdated stock options for business executives and the international affairs prize for its coverage of China.

Click here for the full list of 2007 Pulitzer Prize winners.

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 16, 2007, 10:08 pm
In category: Gotham City | No Comments »

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Immigrant History Week
April 16th, 2007

“Where else do you have a Muslim family living next to a Hindu family living next to Caribbean family living next to a Hasidic Jewish family?” said Azadeh Khalili, deputy commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs. Monday-Sunday, April 16 22, 2007, is an Immigrant History Week, a city-wide celebration that honors the experiences and contributions of immigrants in NYC. Click here for a slide show of Ellis Island with a song from Ragtime, “The Wheels Of A Dream.”

By Oates Ritthichai on April 16, 2007, 2:41 pm
In category: Gotham City | No Comments »

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What They Are Saying This Morning
April 16th, 2007

The New York Post thinks Michael Bloombergs attention to global warming is more evidence that the mayor will run for president. The paper also praises a new investigation into the killing of Patrolman Philip Cardillo who was shot inside the Harlem Nation of Islam mosque in 1972.

The Daily News says the City Council Speaker Christine Quinn is looking to regulate pedicabs because she has friends in the taxi industry.

The New York Sun – celebrating the start of its sixth year of publication – believes “New York is now the theater of the only full-scale newspaper war in America” and brags about its “magnificent audience” and increased circulation numbers.

And over the weekend, the New York Times city section called for pay raises for judges and a rethinking of the Javitz Convention Center plan, arguing that it needs to be “better than just mediocre.”

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 16, 2007, 9:44 am
In category: Gotham City | 1 Comment »

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Do You Love Your Commute?
April 13th, 2007

New Yorkers have higher average commute times than other Americans, but they also enjoy it more, according to an article in this week’s New Yorker.

“It could be that New Yorkers are better conditioned to megalopolitan hardships, or that public transportation ameliorates some of the psychic costs,” the article proposes. “Or maybe theyre better at lying to themselves.”

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 13, 2007, 2:46 pm
In category: Transportation | 3 Comments »

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Wth Friends Like These...
April 13th, 2007

In the annals of public relations, Mayor Michael Bloombergs blistering attack earlier this week on opponents of his school changes may stand out as an example of what not to do. Faced with growing opposition to his latest scheme to reorganize the school system — again — Bloomberg likened the teachers union to the National Rifle Association, slammed the citys newspapers for not being sufficiently gung ho and produced a letter signed by 100 supporters of the plan

But the move to drum up support quickly hit some snags. For one, while characterizing his opponents as special interests, Blomberg seemed to overlook what some might call a conflict of interest among his supporters. Among them, Andrew Wolf writes in the Sun, nearly every individual or group either has a contract with the Department of Education or has matters pending before some city agency, or is the recipient of largesse coming from Mr. Bloomberg ’s own pockets.

On the other hand, Wolf says, when reporters asked whether any of the signatories to the letter themselves had children in the public schools.Only one person, I am told, raised his hand.”

Given the fact that among the many critics of their proposals are parents legitimately concerned about what these funding cuts might mean for their children, in terms of the loss of experienced teachers, class size, or essential services, I don’t know how he can call us “special interests, Leonie Haimson writes in NYC Public School Parents.

The fact of the matter, says Dorothy Giglio of the Region 6 High School Presidents Council is that there is widespread opposition to the latest reorganization scheme. “If I heard from one parent over the last five years that thought the first reorganization was good for their children or for them, I might rethink my position, but the opposite is exactly what I have heard, over and over again. She says. To the people who lined up behind the ayor, for what ever their special reason: Shame. They are pandering in order to gain jobs, or contributions or just because they consider him a friend.

By Gail Robinson on April 13, 2007, 12:04 pm
In category: Education, Gotham City | 1 Comment »

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Second Avenue Subway: Then and Now
April 13th, 2007

Mayor John Lindsay attempting to break ground in 1972. Photo: NYTimes.com

Governor Eliot Spitzer attempting another groundbreaking in 2007. Photo: Getty Images

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 13, 2007, 7:58 am
In category: Transportation | 1 Comment »

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Friday's NYC Editorial Roundup
April 13th, 2007

Responding to an ongoing investigation by State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, Newsday calls on local universities to restore trust in the student loan system.

The New York Sun criticizes City Council Speaker Christine Quinn for backing legislation that would impose a limit on the number of pedicabs in the city.

And the New York Times and the New York Post mourn the loss of writer Kurt Vonnegut, who moved to the city in 1947 and died in his apartment in Manhattan this week. The time to read Vonnegut is just when you begin to suspect that the world is not what it appears to be, the Times writes.

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 13, 2007, 7:17 am
In category: Gotham City | No Comments »

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What They're Saying This Morning
April 12th, 2007

From the editorial pages:

The Times criticizes presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani for his support of the confederate flag — and the New York Sun agrees.

The Post goes after New York Chief Justice Judith Kaye for her agressive push for a pay raise for judges.

The News says an “education whistleblower” bill “must not pass,” and remains skeptical about today’s groundbreaking for the 2nd Avenue Subway.

By Joshua Brustein on April 12, 2007, 7:15 am
In category: Gotham City | No Comments »

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New York and Federal Spring Flings
April 12th, 2007

Conservative federal leaders and progressive New York politicians are uniting on issues.

Governor Spitzer blocked the deal to allow Clipper Equity to buy the Starrett City apartment complex and raise the rents on 6,000 units. The Bush administration applauded the intervention. Appearing with several New York elected officials, President Bush’s housing secretary Alphonso Jackson stated that instituting market rents, would be the worst kind of theft to steal all of this from them. The President and the Governor are united on maintaining affordable housing, and the New York Sun sums up its dissent by calling the proposed sale of Starrett City, “something to embrace as a sign of the city’s vitality and success.”

Former house speaker Newt Gingrich voiced his urge to advance radical environmental policy change this week. He publicly denied the global warming problem just 18 months before. To reduce harmful greenhouse gases, Gingrich supports a market-based approach instead of more regulation. His book Contract with the Earth which is due out this fall should explain his full strategy.

The New York Sun also reports that Bloomberg is considering both stricter rules and tax incentives to address the citys pollution problem. He released a survey of New York City carbon emissions and seeks to reduce them 30 percent by 2030. Because the city cannot enact energy policy changes independently of the state government, Bloomberg will likely also focus on a market-based approach. Further details of policy changes will be announced in the coming weeks and perhaps environmentalist Gingrich will make an appearance at Bloombergs Earth Day press conference.

By Sydney Beveridge on April 12, 2007, 5:00 am
In category: Gotham City | 3 Comments »

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Special Elections -- Again
April 11th, 2007

Update: The Politicker is reporting that only two candidates — Mathieu Eugene and Harry Schiffman — will be on the ballot for the April 24 special City Council election. Schiffman was one of the losing candidates last time around.

For residents of the 40th City Council district not totally disgusted with politics, Vox Pop, a Cortelyou Road coffee house, will hold a candidates forum tonight from 6:30 to 9:30. Voters in this swath of Central Brooklyn or some small percentage of them will go to the polls on April 24 to vote in their second special election this year. The redo of the February 20 vote became necessary when it became apparent the winner of that contest, Mathieu Eugene, did not meet residency requirements and may not have been totally truthful about where he lived when.

Eugene says he now lives in the district and wants the council seat. But he may be venturing into unfriendly territory at tonights debate. The moderator and chief instigator at Vox Pop, Sander Hix, is clearly miffed at Eugene, writing that the candidate never responded to requests to appear at the coffeehouses first debate in January. When Hix tried to interview Eugene in March, Hix writes, Eugene scheduled and then cancelled several appointments. Hix is also miffed at not having had a councilmember for these many months:

And just in case you were worrying we might go a few months without an election Pete Grannis was finally confirmed as state environment commissioner and so has resigned from the legislature, according to the Politicker. So now, the governor must call an election to fill that seat. But even though the election has yet to be scheduled, Micah Kellner seems to hold a commanding lead. His array of endorsements made all his potential Democratic challengers to bail out of the race in this overwhelmingly Democratic Manhattan district.

For more on special elections, see Voting Yes, Democracy Maybe.

By Gail Robinson on April 11, 2007, 4:08 pm
In category: Albany, Electoral Politics, Gotham City, Governing | No Comments »

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Prison Breaks
April 11th, 2007

While the state legislature dealt a blow to prison reform when it blocked creation of a commission to study prison closings, there remain a number of things Governor Eliot Spitzer could do to improve corrections policy in the state, El-Diario-La Prensa writes today. For example, the state should resume Medicaid coverage for released prisoners. The paper goes on to recommend a number of other steps New York could adapt to ease former convicts re-entry to life on the outside.

For more on criminal justice under Spitzer, see Gotham Gazette.

By Gail Robinson on April 11, 2007, 9:01 am
In category: Albany, Crime & Safety, Gotham City, Health | 1 Comment »

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What They're Saying This Morning
April 11th, 2007

Whats behind the reversal of fortune in Albany where the latest polls show Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is more popular than Governor Eliot Spitzer? In todays News, Bill Hammond examines Cuomos first 100 days and finds the attorney general is surprising a lot of people, including Hammond.

Governor Eliot Spitzer and the Bush administration have found common ground in their opposition to the proposed sale of the Starrett City housing complex in Brooklyn and theyre both wrong, says the the Sun. Rather than being something to fear, the editorial says, the proposed sale is something to embrace as a sign of the city’s vitality and success.”

The Sun also gives space to someone it frequently criticizes teachers union president Randi Weingarten. She urges the City Council to pass a measure that would protect teachers who become whistleblowers.

Meanwhile the Post goes after Weingarten, applauding Mayor Michael Bloomberg for slamming her and her union for, in the papers view, standing in the way of school reform. Only one problem in the Posts eyes: Bloomberg condemned the union by likening it to the National Rifle Association. And that, the Post says, is unfair to the NRA.

By Gail Robinson on April 11, 2007, 7:34 am
In category: Albany, Education, Electoral Politics, Gotham City, Housing | No Comments »

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Corporate Graffiti
April 10th, 2007

To promote a new line of sneakers, Adidas invited seven graffiti artists to paint a replica of a subway car – a publicity stunt that has prompted outrage from some local politicians.

Graffiti has nothing to do with sneakers, so basically its just another despicable corporation trying to look edgy by promoting a crime in search of profits, said Councilman Peter Vallone Jr.

Gawker has a short video interview with one of the artists, named Kiante, who says the event is being done with the utmost respect.” Mayor Bloomberg, I love you man, says Kiante. I even voted for you – and Im not even a Republican.

Some local graffiti artists aren’t amused either. “It sounds lame on so many different levels,” writes Gaff News, a blog covering “The World Wide War On Graffiti Writers.”

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 10, 2007, 3:42 pm
In category: Arts, Crime & Safety, Transportation | 8 Comments »

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Blogging the Bubble
April 10th, 2007

The Drum Major Institute blog and NYC Housing Bubble blog follow up on a recent report by Sen. Charles Schumer finding that 6,100 families in Brooklyn could be at risk of losing their homes due to sub-prime foreclosures. For more on foreclosures and lending in NYC, see archive of articles by DMI blogger and Gotham Gazette contributor Mark Winston Griffith.

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 10, 2007, 8:21 am
In category: Housing | 1 Comment »

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Water Woes
April 10th, 2007

The city Water Board wants to raise the rate by 11.5 percent, adding $72 dollars to the average single family home bill. It’s the largest increase since 1992.

The New York Post opinion page rips Governor Eliot Spitzer for remaining neutral on three large upstate real-estate development projects bordering reservoirs that feed the city’s drinking-water supply. Pollution sure to be generated by the developments could – indeed, likely will – prompt the federal Environmental Protection Agency to force New York City to build a water-purification complex costing billions to construct and hundreds of millions annually to operate, the Post writes.

And Gothamist points out that a recent New York Times article contained an item of interest for residents living near the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn: The city plans to shut the flushing tunnel for 18 months of repairs, and that could bring back the smell of the bad old days.” The Flushing Tunnel is a sewer pipe stretching from the harbor to the head of the Gowanus Canal and was built to minimize local pollution. Community Board 6 is working to deal with the issue.

By Mark Berkey-Gerard on April 10, 2007, 7:30 am
In category: Environment, Gotham City | 1 Comment »

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Our Money Overseas
April 9th, 2007

Comptroller William Thompson wants to make the city’s money talk. He filed shareholder resolutions on behalf of the New York City Pension Funds with Google and Yahoo! calling on the internet giants to create a set of standards when they “conduct business with authoritarian governments.”

The proposal said the technology companies should declare that they resist “pro-active” censorship and that they not store data that could identify individuals in countries where political speech can be illegal.

But apparently, Google’s board of directors were not all that fond of the idea. MarketWatch reported last week that the company voted down the proposal.

An example of the perils of companies like this operating in repressive governments played out recently. Yahoo! reportedly gave information to Chinese authorities that led to a ten year prison sentence for a journalist. The jounalist, Shi Tao, had publicized a memo he received from the government regarding his coverage of the 15th anniversary of Tiananmen Square.

The city’s pension funds hold $110.5 million of shares in Yahoo! and $276.2 million in Google.

By Mike Muller on April 9, 2007, 4:35 pm
In category: Civil Rights, Gotham City, Public Finance, Tech | No Comments »

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