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New City Council Bills -- Conserving Energy, Limiting Noise


At each of the City Council's stated meetings, council members introduce bills, most of which will never become laws (for the process by which bills become laws, click here). As a regular feature, Gotham Gazette discusses some of the legislation proposed at each meeting.

The New York City Council introduced 15 bills at its most recent meeting on August 16, 2006, many of which focused on energy conservation or noise.

ENERGY

 

Due in part to the controversy over the Astoria blackout earlier in July, three bills have been introduced to strengthen the city's attempts to conserve energy.

Councilmember James Gennaro from Queens introduced two bills that would require the mayor 's office to be more proactive on energy conservation.

Intro 410 would require the mayor to create a contingency plan to respond to high levels of energy uses. Modeled on the city's drought contingency plan, the bill would require the mayor to design a graduated response to various levels of energy usage.

Intro 411 would make the mayor responsible for creating an energy policy that the public is aware of. Under this bill, mayoral programs would encourage energy conservation and alternative modes of transportation. As an example, Gennaro's office suggested encouraging buildings that use a lot of power to install solar panels to create their own energy, rather than relying on power plants alone.

Councilmember Miguel Martinez, representing Washington Heights and Inwood, wants to encourage buildings to use more efficient cooling systems. Many buildings use relatively small coolers, instead of larger "chillers", which cool water and circulate it throughout the building, even though chillers are one and a half times as efficient as the smaller devices. The reason is that chillers require "personal supervision," meaning a full-time employee must be physically present at all times.

Martinez argues that this standard is outdated. Intro 418 would subject all new chillers to general supervision only, making their supervision no more expensive than the smaller, less efficient system.

NOISE

 

Councilmember Alan Gerson of lower Manhattan has introduced several bills to supplement the city's noise code.

Intro 414 would require that agencies that issue permits for construction work on nights and weekends to submit a noise mitigation plan to the local community board and city council member.

Intro 415 would set caps on the levels of noise that construction work can make within one hundred feet of a school or court on days they are in session, or within one hundred feet of a hospital, even if a noise mitigation plan is in place. Intros 412 and 413 would cap the allowable levels of noise from circulation devices and portable generators, respectively.

Intro 416 would prohibit motorcycles with straight pipes from parking on the street. Motorcycles with straight pipes, which are illegal, do not have mufflers. The police department, and the departments of consumer affairs, environmental protection and transportation would have the power to enforce the ban.

"These are quality of life issues that we didn't feel were specifically enough addressed in the noise code," said Paul Pastor, Gerson's legislative director. "Unless you spell things out very often they don't get enforced."

He said that Gerson plans to introduce another bill further restricting noise from patio and courtyard restaurants in the council's next session on September 13.

 

Succeeding Green in Fort Greene -- and Beyond


 

At a recent forum, Freddie Hamilton, a candidate for State Assembly in central Brooklyn, told the audience packed into an unventilated church basement, that she would not be answering any questions about the Atlantic Yards proposal. The disappointed crowd responded with boos.

The exchange illustrated how devisive the Atlantic Yards issue has become in the race for the Assembly seat being vacated by Roger Green, who is running for Congress.

The three Democrats. Freddie Hamilton, William Batson, and Hakeem Jeffries, all have different views on the controversial proposal for the district. The one Republican candidate, Henry Weinstein was unreachable for comment.

Atlantic Yards

The Frank Gehry design for Atlantic Yards calls for building 16 high-rise structures for offices and apartments as well as an arena for the Brooklyn Nets professional basketball team in downtown Brooklyn.

Freddie Hamilton, a staunch supporter of the project, was a signatory of a community benefits agreement between six community based organizations and the developer of the project, Forest City Ratner Companies. Hamilton believes that the project 'will ultimately provide the best outcomes for the district.'

William Batson, former aide to State Senator David Patterson, is an outspoken opponent of the 6.5-acre real estate development. 'This project has everything that's wrong with overdevelopment in it' .It's a three-card monte proposal that changes every time you look down' said Batson.

Hakeem Jeffries, a litigator for the CBS Corporation and third time candidate, refuses to denounce the $4.2 billion project, but criticizes the plan in its current form. 'The proposed project is too dense and would dramatically change the character of the tree-lined residential neighborhood that it borders,' he said.

Affordable Housing

All the candidates agree that the district needs more affordable housing. However, they differ over whether Atlantic Yards will help provide that.

New York State Assembly- District 57:
Prospect Heights, Fort Green, Clinton Hill, and Crown Heights areas of Brooklyn.

The Candidates

' William Batson
Prospect Heights resident, is an artist and activist.

' Freddie Hamilton
C hild and family services advocate.

' Hakeem Jeffries
Litigator for the CBS Corporation and a Crown Heights native.

Other Races

New York State Assembly- District 21: Ethnic Politics in Changing Flushing


New York State Senate-District 13: Bringing the Money Back from Albany
New York State Senate-District 20: Debating Health, Education, Reform and, Yes, Atlantic Yards, in Central Brooklyn

New York State Senate-District 24: Democrats Move in on Staten Island's Republican South Shore

Freddie Hamilton believes that it will. According to her, plans for the development include over 200 units for residents with annual incomes as low as $19,00 .

William Batson, who has worked with local residents to protest the pending development, calls Forest City Ratner's promise of new affordable housing a 'fraud.' 'We need real government action to address our housing crises, not the dubious promises of private developers,' said Batson during a recent speech.

If elected, Hakeem Jeffries hopes to address the housing situation by repealing the Urstadt law, which places the power to control rents in the hands of the state legislature rather than city government.

'Working families and senior citizens on fixed incomes are being pushed out of the only neighborhoods they've ever called home,' said Jeffries, who was born and raised in central Brooklyn and provides free legal advice to residents who are facing displacement.

Arson

The housing problem has been made worse by a rash of over 18 arsons in the past 14 months. Most of these crimes have not been solved. Many of the areas they affected are low-income neighborhoods where many residents do not have insurance. Along with losing a place to live; those lucky enough to survive the fires lose everything they own as well.

William Batson is focusing much of his campaign efforts on addressing the arson problem. Co-chair of the Fire Safety Committee on Community Board 8, Batson has been very vocal about his opposition to Mayor Michael Bloomberg's cuts in the number of fire marshals throughout the city, reducing the force by 25 percent in 2003. If elected, Batson has promised to work with city officials to improve response time for emergency services by ensuring all residents are never more than three minutes from a fire station.

Hakeem Jeffries wants to add more fire marshals to the district as well as establish arson prevention units to understand the cause of the problem better.

Schools and Youth Services

Freddie Hamilton has adopted the strengthening of childcare programs 'which she refers to as safety net services- as the defining issue of her campaign.

Freddie Hamilton, who believes the city should 'rethink' letting the mayor control the public school system, says that she will work to improve the training that teachers receive and to reduce class sizes.

Hakeem Jeffries, a father of two young boys, echoes similar concerns about the condition of Brooklyn public schools.

'Public schools are still failing some of our children; overcrowded classrooms, insufficient books,' said Jeffries ' We are at risk of dooming hundreds if not thousands of our young people to lives of disadvantage and despair.'

Candidate Debates

Citizens Union will present several Democratic candidate debates before the September 12 primary.

Assembly District 74
(The Lower East Side, East Side, Midtown East, and Murray Hill)
Candidates: Sylvia Friedman, Brian Kavanagh, Esther Yang, and Juan Pagan
Monday August 14; at 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
St. Nicholas Church, 288 East 10th Street, (between First Avenue and Avenue A)
(Presented in partnership with Our Town Downtown and City Hall.)

Assembly District 13
(Flushing and surrounding areas)
:Julia Harrison and Ellen Young
(Flushing and surrounding areas)
Monday, August 21, 2006; 6:15 to 7:45 p.m.
Flushing Library, Main Street at Kissena Blvd.

Senate District 13
(Corona, Jackson Heights, and East Elmhurst)
Candidates: Hiram Monserrate and Jon Sabini
Wednesday, August 23; 6:15 to 7:45 p.m.
Langston Hughes Cultural Center/Library, 101-01 Northern Boulevard, Corona

The two Queens debates are presented in partnership with Queens Civic Congress and cosponsored by: North East Jewish Community Council, NAACP-Corona East Elmhurst, Mid Queens Community Council, Queens Chronicle; NAACP-North-East Branch, and Flushing Jewish Community Council.

For more information, go to Citizens Union.

If elected, Jeffries says he will fight for the hundreds of millions of dollars that New York City public schools are supposed to receive through the Campaign for Fiscal Equity lawsuit on school funding.

William Batson, co-founder of the youth outreach group American Civil Rights Education Service, believes that one of the keys to improving the quality of education in the district is to expose the youth to Brooklyn's cultural landmarks and rich history.

Brooklyn Democratic Party

From Assemblyman Roger Green's guilty plea for petty larceny to former Brooklyn Democratic Party Leader Clarence Norman's felony corruption convictions, the Brooklyn political establishment has been under attack.

Despite that, though, incumbents usually win, and critics say one reason is that legislative districts are drawn to protect them.

Hakeem Jeffries knows this all too well. After he won 40 percent of the vote in his 2000 bid to unseat incumbent Roger Green, Jeffries home was drawn out of the district.

'I went to bed in the 57th and woke up somewhere else' said Jeffries. Now Jeffries supports the redistricting reform bill introduced by State Assemblyman Michael Gianaris. 'Democratic elections,' he said, 'are meant to protect the people not political positions.'

William Batson points to cronyism as a major problem preventing reform. Batson thinks that, under current redistricting laws, legislators are not encouraged to act in the best interests of their constituents. And he says the current system results in a lack of representation for some areas and over-representation for others. 'There are districts upstate that have multiple seats because they count the nearby prison population of convicted felons, who cannot vote as residents,' said Batson. 'Meanwhile we have Hempstead, Long Island, with a growing minority population that has been fighting for a seat for decades.'

Freddie Hamilton agrees that the current system needs reform and promises that she will work for a more impartial system. 'Redistricting should be done by a neutral party'. It has not worked when elected officials draw their own district,' said Hamilton.

Campaign Support

So far, Assemblymember Roger Green has not endorsed any of the candidates vying to replace him. But each Assembly hopeful has garnered support from various local organizations.

William Batson has recently secured the endorsement of the Sierra Club, a grassroots environmental organization, and City Councilmember Bill de Blasio. Batson has also received $35,491 of campaign contributions.

According to Freddie Hamilton, her campaign is being supported by several child advocacy groups, including Black Administrators for Child Welfare. As of the July filing deadline, Hamilton's financial contributions from her supporters total $22760.04.

Hakeem Jeffries has the endorsements of the Working Families Party, the Progressive Association for Political Action, the Lambda Association for Independent Democrats, the Communication Workers of America- District 1, and SEIU 32BJ. Jeffries has received financial contributions totaling $77,610.00.

 

Off the Farm and Into the Faucet


Like many U.S. farmers, Ulster County dairyman Tom Hutson is a businessman first and a romantic second. In New York City recently to accept a $10,000 Steward of the Land award from the American Farmland Trust, Hutson made a point of pulling a plastic bag of dirt out of his pocket and delivering a brief comment on its contents.

“I’m a farmer, so you just have to understand one thing,” said Hutson, holding up a sample of bottomland soil scooped that morning on his family’s 380-acre River Haven farm in DeLancey, N.Y. “This is gold to me.”

But the contents of Hutson’s little bag has significance for New York City residents as well. Hutson’s farm is within the Catskills/Delaware watershed, the city’s primary source of drinking water. What he does on his land has a direct impact on the purity of the water coming out of New York City’s taps – and on how much the city must spend to keep that water clean.

Hutson is a member of the Watershed Agricultural Council, a city- and state-sponsored organization designed to reduce organic pollution within the Catskills/Delaware watershed. He earned his award by letting his farm serve as a laboratory for testing the council’s land management recommendations. Starting in 1994, Hutson has retained “buffer strips” -- wide swaths of vegetation alongside streams – intended to protect the waterways on his farm from direct fertilizer runoff and bank erosion. He has built manure containment systems and implemented a rotational grazing program to minimize and distribute the impact his 108-animal herd has on the farm’s 100 acres of pasture. Hutson also adopted the Watershed Area Council’s forest management plan, limiting cutting and development on the 57 acres of woodland within his farm boundaries.

“Nobody cares more about protecting the land than a farmer,” says Hutson. “But when you’re developing a whole farm plan, there’s a real learning curve involved. Farming’s tough enough as it is.”

Good Environment, Good Business

 

To help Hutson make the adjustment, the city’s Department of Environmental Protection kicked in $100,000. The money is part of a $100 million effort to protect New York City’s drinking water at its source. The program has two goals, according to Barry Beckhardt, program director for the Department of Environmental Protection’s Watershed Agricultural & Forestry Program. It wants to encourage upstate farm managers to do the right thing environmentally and it hopes keep those farms in business instead of succumbing to development pressures.

“Instead of supporting farms through subsidies, we’re proposing that farmers be supported by the way they protect the land,” says Beckhardt.

Development in the city’s second major water source, the Croton Watershed, is already forcing the city to build a plant to filter runoff before the water. The plant, to be constructed in Van Cortlandt Park, is currently estimated to cost at least $1.3 billion. And to make room for it, the city is devoting a 10-acre portion of Van Cortlandt Park to the plant’s construction. Building a similar filtration plant for the Catskills water supply would cost an easy $4 billion, Beckhardt estimates.

In light of that, the $100 million being spent by Watershed Area Council makes economic sense. “This is clearly a more cost effective approach,” Beckhardt says.

The Watershed Agricultural Council owes its existence to a 1992 deal between the city and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In exchange for preserving wild acreage and reducing runoff from the 300 farms in the Catskills/Delaware watershed, the city has been able to avoid the need to filter water from that region. Working through the council, "the city has paid to return 15,000 acres of farmland to uncultivated wilderness, and by 1995 had gotten at least 85 percent of the affected farms to sign up for a pollution prevention program. In return, the Watershed Agricultural Council doled out subsidies to cover the cost of wastewater diversion ditches, barnyard drainage systems and other pollution reduction strategies. The council also helped participating farms draw attention to their products under the “Pure Catskills” brand name.

“The goal is to strengthen the linkages between the producers upstate and the consumers in New York,” says Beckhardt. “It doesn’t make sense to do all this and have the farmers go out of business.”

Marketing the Catskills

 

“Pure Catskills” has helped farmers looking for a local edge in the commodity foods marketplace. Still, as Hutson notes, many farms have a hard time taking advantage of the program. The cultivated acreage on River Haven is devoted mainly to hay and other surplus forage crops that the farm sells to neighboring dairies. As for the milk, most of that is pooled and sold through regional cooperatives and routed to New York City via bulk distributors. Elmhurst Dairy, a Queens-based distributor that bills its milk as “New York’s Own” but not “Pure Catskills,” handles Hutson’s milk.

“Milk is such a perishable commodity,” Hutson says. “You’ve gotta move it every day, and that makes it hard to market as locally produced.”

While direct marketing of “Pure Catskills” milk may not yet make economic sense, the New York City greenmarket system has provided support to the upstate farm economy. According to the Council on the Environment for New York City, an organization that provides information on greenmarket produce and schedules, the city’s 51 markets have helped sustain 11,000 acres of cultivated farmland and keep 27,000-plus acres total out of development.

“The good news is that New York City boasts the best greenmarket system in the country,” says Jeremiah Cosgrove, northeast regional director for American Farmland Trust. “The only thing missing right now is the consumer education component. We’re trying to make it so food buyers in the city recognize that the few cents extra they pay on local dairy products or local produce is actually a cost savings when you compare it to the amount they save on their taxes if the city has to build a new filtration plant.”

 



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