Only Two Truck Routes in Sunset Park - 39th and 65th

Bet you didn't know there were only two side streets that trucks are supposed to take if they don't have a local delivery.  Here on 44th Street, it sure seems like we've got one of the truck routes based on the number of trucks that go barreling up the hill.  (I know, how do they barrel UP the hill?  But they do!)

Don't believe me about the 39th and 65th Street (and a little of 60th Street) deal?  Here, look: 

The blue lines are LOCAL truck routes, and the red are THROUGH truck routes.  

How's The Air Up There?

Walking in the park last night, I noticed these strange boxes hanging on a lamppost.  They add a lot to the sunset and torn banner, don't you think?  

 Upon closer inspection, my friend and I ruled out security cameras, sirens, and solar panels to help light the lamps.  All we had to do was check the bottom of the locked suitcases, of course.

Air pollution  monitors!  It says to call 311 with any questions.  When I exclaimed (in my eternal optimism), "Hey!  It's monitoring our air!  That's great!"  A passerby commented, "Yeah, but we can't find out the results."  Well, I say take this to 311 over and over:  5835.  That's the number on the boxes.  And according to the other markings, they will monitor the air until 12/2/09.

Call 311 for the results.  And if you are told the results aren't yet available, set up an alert for a week later and call again.

Raccoon Sighting by P.S. 24

A local parent spotted a "slow and lethargic" raccoon near P.S. 24 on Thursday afternoon. She wasn't sure who to call, and the short answer is to call 311 if you see any animal behaving strangely.

A much more comprehensive answer was presented by another local parent who used to work at a wildlife center:

311 (Animal Control) is probably the best resource in the City for issues like this, but they're unlikely to be able to do anything if the raccoon isn't contained (in a box or a cage trap) or injured. Even slow moving raccoons will probably leave the area before they arrive.

Believe it or not, raccoons are actually more populous in cities and suburbs than in the "wilds," because they thrive on our leftovers and trash. The Humane Society of the United States has lots of good information on its website about raccoons: Link. Another good resource is the MSPCA: link.

Your experience is a good reminder that we should all teach our kids to stay away from wildlife and take care to secure our trash. (And maybe rethink leaving cat food outside overnight.)

Good News on the Streets

Well, 311 works, apparently. Recently, I posted about some truly awful street situations on 46th, 6th Avenue, and 41st Street. As of earlier in the week, 46th Street has been fixed, 41st Street has been worked on and is waiting to be re-paved, and 6th Avenue is, as you can see in the photos above and below, neatened up and dubbed with an updated posting. Now the work is supposed to be completed by April 30th, 2009.



Don't forget, if there are situations like damaged signs, huge craters in your street, unsafe construction sites, or other issues around your neighborhood, calling 311 is always an option. The last few times I've called have been short, effective, and pleasant calls.

ConEd Causes 46th Street Heartache

This is not the sort of color we want to see lining the springtime streets of Sunset Park. About a week ago, I passed by this area of 46th Street, but I was on the opposite side of the street, so I didn't see the dates posted on the signs. It wasn't until I saw this on Brooklynian that the full scope of inconvenience and unattractive barricading became clear. So, I decided to take a closer look.

Taking up a full quarter of the left side of the block, and straddling a fire hydrant (you can just make it out on the center-left of the above photo), these plastic, yellow, floating grates and the rickety plastic and wood triangle things (what are they called?) have been part of this 46th Street block for over a month. Some of the signs on the barricades say that the work started and ended on February 24th, 2009. Others had an early March ending date.

The Brooklynian poster asserts that there has been "no perceptible activity there for weeks" and that calls to ConEd have been frustrating because ConEd claims that no problems show up on that block. I guess the computers need to be updated with reality.

The trenches along the left-hand side of the road are pretty deep, and the plastic grates are not attached to the road with anything other than gravity. Perhaps several calls to 311 would help this situation; apparently ConEd doesn't want to collect property with its name on it.

Playground Despair and Possible but Slow Solutions

The final days of summer (aka countdown to school) are upon us. Patience with the problems summer brings to local parks (in addition to the joys!) is running dry. As happens every year, those who have younger children have had to adjust their use of playgrounds during the summer due to several camps and day-care facilities using the playground as a daily destination and the influx of school-age children sharing the playground with the barely-walking set. Dodging water-balloons (sold by vendors in the playground who rarely seem to get tickets), yanking toddlers out of scooter and bike "paths" that magically appear in the playground, and sometimes intentionally getting in the way of tweens and teens who, despite being asked nicely to watch for the babies, storm the slides and bridges on the equipment (passive aggressive? who me?) are all part of the fun of summer at the Sunset Park playground.

However, shared stories about the heat from Sunset Park's black playground mats burning children's appendages, poop in the playground, and the reality of the overcrowding in the Sunset Park playground have caused some Sunset Park Parents to feel like nothing can be done to improve the playground conditions.

One parent wrote about what led her to the edge of despair:

...The truth is fixing our park feels like a Sisyphean task. I went to the park last Tuesday at 7 PM. The playground was teeming with kids. Truly over-run. And of course the equipment was the mangled, dirty mess it always is. There was litter everywhere and a vendor set up selling plastic crap inside the playground. Some father whose kid was playing on the same structure as mine literally left his garbage (they'd been eating potato chips) on the playground equipment as he left. Meanwhile over at the water fountain kids were filling water balloons, exploding [them] on the ground and then leaving the detritus. So I despaired. There's garbage all over our park. In part it's because of the respect many of the people who use it show and the utter laziness of the grounds crew who seem to spend their time blowing the garbage around. But it's also because our park is so overcrowded and overused. And it's because the city government really seems to neglect our neighborhood. These things, this week, just felt impossible to overcome to me. *

* used with the author's permission

While some of the issues she brings up don't seem overly offensive on their own, those of us who have been attending the playground regularly - and who have been trying to make small improvements (confronting bicyclists of all ages, closing the gates when entering/exiting, asking elderly groups of men to please take their smoking elsewhere, grabbing children away from broken glass, steering curious children away from the rice and milk vomit recently deposited by a toddler, and so on and so on) can easily understand why the despair would be brought on by the myriad of "smaller" items mentioned above.

So, what CAN be done? Other parents in the area responded with support and ideas.

Suggestions range from contacting Sara Gonzalez (whose email is: gonzalez@council.nyc.ny.us), calling 311 until results are seen, contacting Fox News or CBS2 (hoping for a "Shame, shame, shame" or "Shame on You" story), or getting 7 on Your Side.

However, the day to day efforts are probably just as effective. It's exhausting and demoralizing to "do the right thing" all the time. I certainly don't manage to do it. However, if enough people pick up, call 311, close the gates, confront smokers, ask bike riders to take it to the paths, and so on, it will make a difference eventually.

I kind of like the idea of a television segment, however. More flashy, more immediate, and more dramatic.

Playground Action by Parents in Bay Ridge

The NY Daily News has a short article about how parents have dealt with ugly behavior in Bay Ridge playgrounds.

Here's the link: Bay Ridge Moms...

The problems had come up recently on the Bay Ridge Parents board. The most egregious mentioned involved a teenage girl cursing and making vulgar sexual motions towards a toddler who was (gasp!) loudly enjoying the playground.

For those of us in Sunset Park, people in the playgrounds without children is a common sight. The folks in the photo from this morning were having an intense conversation for the entire time we were there. No children attached to any of them, as far as I could tell.

Many adult residents also use the equipment in the AM to stretch and do pull-ups and headstands. They have usually cleared out by 10 AM or so, and most seem happy to move over when children get in their circle of fitness. I suppose that technically, we could call 311 about these folks, but would that be productive?

I've called 311 about people sleeping on the benches in the playground in the afternoon, and I heard that tickets were issued to vendors who consistently enter the playground to sell toys/treats. They come right back later, of course, but at least it's more official than a parent. For the most part, I've just asked (okay, told) adults and children who use the playground as their biking short-cut or scooter space to leave the playground. And usually I'm met with a blank stare (Language barrier? It couldn't be each time.). I've also tried closing the gates when I enter (it actually works to keep bikes and some unaccompanied adults out), but inevitably they are left open within a few minutes. Admittedly, I've gotten lazy about all of these responses because I don't see a change. Maybe I'll try once more. The "official" response in the article is encouraging, but what is said to the media and what is actually done can be very different.

from the article:

A Parks Department spokesman said that the parks in question are made strictly for kids, and called on concerned parents to help them stay that way.

"Teens or adults can only be in a playground area if they are accompanied by a child under the age of 12," said spokesman Phillip Abramson. "This is a citywide rule put in place to protect our children."

Residents who see anyone lurking at the park without a child should call 311 right away, said Abramson.

Lend Me Wire Cutters, Please.

The photos show today's condition of the fence outside the Sunset Park Playground entrance. The photos don't do it justice. You can't make out the spiky ends and sharp, curled tentacles waiting for an eager child to pass by.

Just about two weeks ago I made my first complaint about the "fence" at the back entrance to the playground in Sunset Park. I was met with concern and creased brows and frowns about the situation. "Oh yes, that's a problem. Yeah, that's a safety issue." Sadly, not enough of one to prompt action.

Another concerned caretaker joined me in speaking to a Parks worker today about the hazard. She said that we should report it to 311 because they have to call in outside people to take care of it. Now, I know what City agencies can be like. Really, I do. I know that some people have to do some jobs and other people have to do other jobs. It's not just the City; it's all sorts of systems that are set up to "protect jobs and workers." It one person fixes the fence, that means that someone else doesn't get to have that on his "to do" list and maybe now he's not necessary anymore. You know what? I don't care! I want some action! (And not the kind that Lady Saw was talking about.)

Anyway, that's what I was hoping for this morning when I called 311 to report (again) about the destroyed but dangerous fence outside the Sunset Park playground entrance. It used to be a fence to help grass grow - a less than successful endeavor. However, it has been very successful as a safety hazard. The operator told me that it takes up to 14 days for service requests to go through. Anyone have wire cutters that I can borrow?

Still Smoking? That's SO 2007. I mean, 1997.

The NYC Health Department is ending its free nicotine patch and gum program on May 1st! Quick! Call 311 to enroll in the program at NO COST! There are fewer than 48 hours to call!