By Helen Klein By Helen Klein
He is probably not looking at a crowded field of challengers but, as State Senator Kevin Parker prepares to run for re-election later this year, he is unlikely to have a free ride, at least as far as the Democratic primary is concerned. According to insiders, two individuals are currently looking at the seat – former City Councilmember Noach Dear, who has twice run for the position against Parker and come up short, and Vaughan Toney, the president and chief executive officer of the Friends of Crown Heights Educational Centers, and a long-time political wannabe, who ran for the City Council seat that had been held by his former boss, Lloyd Henry, and won by Kendall Stewart after term limits came into play and prevented Henry from running again. Both Dear and Toney, say the pundits, are serious about making a run, with one caveat. Should City Councilmember Simcha Felder accept a job within the administration of Mayor Michael Bloomberg – supposedly, negotiations are ongoing – then Dear would likely set his sites on that seat, which could be easier to snag, the insiders opine. Numbers Talk The demographics of the district are an important factor in the elections held there. The 21st Senatorial District, which Parker represents, runs through Canarsie, Flatlands and Flatbush to Boro Park. With approximately 311,000 people, according to the 2000 Census, the population of the district is 57 percent non-Hispanic black, 23 percent non-Hispanic white, 11 percent Hispanic, and five percent non-Hispanic Asian, with the remaining population either non-Hispanic American Indian, non-Hispanic multi or non-Hispanic other. However, the inclusion of a chunk of Boro Park ensures Dear a base of votes in the Orthodox community there that, in a three-way race with two black candidates and a low turn-out, could snag the seat for Dear. Some insiders suggest that Toney, for his part, may be running as a “spoiler,” getting into the race to divert votes from Parker and make it easier for Dear to capture the seat. “I’ve heard he’s being put up by Noach,” said one source, who pointed out that, “When Noach first ran in 2002 when the seat was cut, Vaughan was the president of the 42nd A.D. Democratic club, and he turned the club in Noach’s direction and they endorsed him. They also endorsed him two years ago when he ran, so I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that Vaughan is running against Kevin to help Noach.” Others, however, deny that. One political insider noted, “I don’t see him running as a spoiler. With or without Noach, Vaughan is going to run.” “A Formidable Candidate” Either way, Toney would be a good candidate, sources say. “He ran around for eight years as Lloyd Henry’s chief of staff,” remarked Rock Hackshaw, a local political activist. “There are lots of areas in the district where he’s well known, and he came in third in the council race in 2001. If Vaughan is running, he makes a formidable candidate and his candidacy would definitely increase the odds of Noach winning the seat. I don’t believe Noach can beat Kevin one on one. Noach’s chances always increase once there’s another black or minority candidate in the race, especially a Caribbean.” Is Dear’s shadow over the race the reason why there aren’t more challengers? Not so, say area political activists. “It’s going to be expensive,” noted one. “You have to be able to run a credible campaign. You have to have support and money. I think that’s the determining factor. People have looked at it but they don’t think they have the ability right now to make a run. After February,” the source added, “it should become much more clear as to whether more people are going to jump into the race.” Another insider agreed. While noting, “It’s not as if Kevin is so much loved,” and pointing out that Parker was considered by some in the district to be “arrogant,” the source noted, “It’s hard to raise money unless you have deep pockets or a lot of union support,” he noted. “It’s hard to knock out an incumbent. “I am very skeptical of anyone’s chances of taking out Kevin,” the source continued. “Incumbents win handily all around the country. You might get a frivolous challenge, but there are not too many people who are maverick types or who have the heart to try. “How does someone beat him?” the pundit went on. “You’d have to get a lot of support. No elected official is going to come out against him, and I don’t see the energy in the community to generate that kind of excitement, and I don’t see any one activist in the community who will do that. If you look in the community, as much as there is rumbling that Kevin is this, Kevin is that, you don’t see a groundswell against him.” No Decision Made Dear, for his part, said that he, “Hasn’t made a decision as to what I want to do. I am looking at all my options, all the things I think I could do. I enjoy public life and serving people, and, at the appropriate time, I will make my decision.” Dear acknowledged that if Felder relinquished his council seat, ‘I would be interested, but,” he added, “there is nothing there to make that decision.” Dear did pause to criticize Parker’s behavior as well as his performance on behalf of his constituents, specifically remarking on the dust-up between Parker and a traffic agent that occurred approximately a year ago. “Kevin Parker,” Dear said, “has done nothing in the community and, shamefully, he thinks public officials are punching bags. He got arrested for punching out a hard-working civil servant. That’s outrageous. He does a lot of childish things. He’s not someone we want to emulate.” Parker Speaks But Parker said, in a lengthy phone interview, that he was proud of his record. “I’ve worked very hard,” he pronounced. “I will stand by my record every time.” Among his achievements, Parker counted his “leadership positions” as the chairperson of a task force on new Americans, dealing with immigration; the chairperson of a task force on alternative energy; and as the ranking member on the Energy and Telecommunications Committee in the State Senate. “I’ve been a champion on education, fighting the governor and in the State Senate to get funds ordered under the CFE decision, and I’ve been trying to make sure money is coming here,” Parker added. He had also, he said, “Been very active in the district,” offering a range of services to constituents including such things as free prostate screening, as well as taking on the position of chairperson of the Brooklyn- Staten Island blood donor drive in 2005. “I’ve addressed everything from housing to immigration,” said Parker, noting that he had reached out to, “Build partnerships, working with churches, block associations, civic associations and other elected officials such as Nick Perry and Yvette Clarke. I’m more than happy to put these things before the voters.” As for the encounter with the traffic agent, Parker noted, “It was an incident that got blown out of proportion. The case was dismissed. As far as I’m concerned, it’s behind me. It was unfortunate. I wish it had never happened. But, it’s behind me.” Looking ahead, Parker said that he expected to, “Run with the support of a lot of people who have traditionally supported me.” While noting that Dear and Toney and anyone else have a right to run, Parker said that he would put his record up against his challengers’ records. “We live in a democracy,” he stressed. “One of the checks and balances we have are elections, which is one of the ways for voters to make it official that what their elected officials are doing in correct. “In 2006,” he concluded, “it’s insufficient to show up every two years to compete for a position and not do anything in the intervening time.” Efforts to reach Toney, who was out of town at the time the article was being written, were unsuccessful by press time. Thanks to the refusal of New York State to contribute any money to the Department of Education’s five-year capital construction plan, a number of key projects may not be able to proceed as planned, including the long-awaited Midwood High School annex. The annex, which is intended to take the form of a science lab building with an extensive library, situated on the DOE-owned schoolyard across the street and connected to the main building by a bridge, was scheduled to start construction this year, as soon as the spring. However, according to DOE spokesperson Alicia Maxey, the project at the Bedford Avenue and Glenwood Road school is one of eight in the borough, and 23 around the city, listed by DOE as being in jeopardy because of lack of state funding. The city has committed $6.5 billion to help fund the $13 billion 2005-2009 capital plan, and has made it clear that it expected the remainder of the money to be provided by the state. Elusive CFE Funds Deputy Chancellor Kathleen Grimm, who heads up the finance and administration division of DOE, said that the city educational system was entitled to $9.1 billion in 2004 dollars from New York State, based on the judge’s decision in the lawsuit filed by the Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE), a grass roots organization that sued the state for systematically shortchanging city schools of funding and thereby reneging on their obligation to provide city students with a “sound basic education.” But, so far, the state has refused to pony up. “Last year,” noted Grimm, during a phone interview, “ it became quite evident that the state was not going to give us the money.” To keep the capital plan moving forward in its first year, Grimm said that, in 2005, Mayor Michael Bloomberg had put in not only the city’s $1.3 billion portion for the year, but had also “advanced another $1.3 billion,” to cover the projected state funding that was necessary to keep the capital plan on track. The good news was that projects scheduled for the first year were able to proceed. But, the reality is that, in the second year of the plan, “The last four years are denuded” of funding, said Grimm. “Here we are in January, 2006, and we haven’t gotten a cent,” she pointed out. When DOE had issued its draft amendment to the capital plan last month, she added, “We said we have a problem. The mayor can’t advance any more money, because there’s no more to advance, so we indicated the proposals now at risk. “We could put the Midwood annex out to contract if we had state money,” Grimm added. “That’s what’s so terrible about this. We have the site, we’ve done the design and we’re all ready to go, if we had the money.” Eliminate Overcrowding A major goal of the 2005-2009 capital plan, which calls for the construction of 107 new schools, was to, “Totally eliminate overcrowding in the city, as well as to eliminate trailers,” Grimm emphasized. “This plan was totally based on need.” Midwood, she said, is currently at 171 percent of capacity. In the case of the Midwood annex, the $27.5 million plan would provide students with an additional 340 seats in a three-story building that would also include a 6,000 square foot library. There would be 10 science demonstration rooms, four labs, plus administrative areas. The opening of the new science annex would allow the renovation of the school’s current science facilities for classroom space. The annex would occupy approximately 18,000 square feet of the 67,600 square foot schoolyard that is attached to the Public School 152/Public School 315 educational complex, with the remainder of the schoolyard renovated as a play space that could be used by children attending the two schools during the school day and by neighborhood children at other times. Open Area for Play It is this play space that is a major concern of area residents, who had initially targeted the schoolyard for a playground that was funded and designed before DOE brought forward its science annex proposal. Working with the School Construction Authority (SCA), members of the South Midwood Residents’ Association (SMRA) had helped develop plans for the open space that would be beneficial in a neighborhood where open space is distinctly at a premium. Julian Alssid, the president of SMRA, noted, “I feel that people in this community put a lot of work in to the project, and neighborhood kids are in dire need of appropriate outdoor space. The vast majority of people in the neighborhood would be very disappointed if the project didn’t happen. While the annex is still controversial, it would be a shame if another generation of children have to grow up without appropriate outdoor play space.” As for the annex, he said, “The attitude of most people I’ve spoken with is that if it’s going to ensure that Midwood has a top-flight program, it’s not a bad thing for our community.” Susannah Laskaris, a member of SMRA who has been deeply involved in planning for the open space to accompany the Midwood annex, decried the potential loss of the project that she said would be a “win-win” for both those who wanted open space and those who wanted a state-of-the-art lab for Midwood. “To go yet another 10 years with undeveloped open space, jeopardizes children’s future of maximizing playtime outside and of maximizing learning in the lab,” Laskaris stressed. “Already there’s been 12 years of this being undeveloped. The plans now in place are a viable solution to both Midwood’s overcrowding and the need for open space for the children in the elementary schools for the community. It would be an unbelievable waste of political power to pull the plug on this for another 10 years.” Potential Construction Gridlock One situation that may be alleviated if the construction of the annex is delayed is the confluence of construction projects facing South Midwood, noted area resident Warren Dingott. Pointing out that Midwood was already in the throes of an exterior renovation, Dingott ticked off the other projects that could be going on simultaneously – not just the annex construction, but extensive construction at Brooklyn College, and mall construction at the site of the former municipal parking lot at the Junction. “There are going to be cement trucks and construction equipment rolling through this neighborhood both day and night,” remarked Dingott. “If the annex is postponed, that would make things somewhat easier for all concerned.” While Dingott said he did not think the annex project would ultimately be shelved, he said that he, “Would be happy if the original project envision when Lloyd Henry was in the council” could be revived. “It would afford the neighborhood some breathing space, some green space,” Dingott opined. “The area being offered in conjunction with the Midwood annex is paltry compared to what was offered in Lloyd Henry’s time. I think the kids should really be the priority,” he concluded, suggesting, “There are alternatives that could be worked out within Midwood” to accommodate the needed science labs. Florence Valentino, a South Midwood resident who is also a member of Community Board 14, agreed. “In view of the fact that they have this project going on at the main school, even proposing to start work on the annex across the street is unconscionable for the neighborhood,” she contended. “If it doesn’t go forward, I’m not going to be shedding any tears. “I think the elementary school kids are being shortchanged in this,” she went on. “I’m not against Midwood. I’m an alum, and my son is too. But, they are trying to sell the annex as a way to relieve overcrowding, and it’s not. It’s going to be for 300 of the school’s best students. If it were for overcrowding, you couldn’t argue it.” Looking Ahead Beyond the 23 schools listed by DOE as being in jeopardy are many schools that are considerably less advanced in terms of planning. As many as 80 to 90 of the schools proposed in the plan are in jeopardy, said Grimm, who pointed out that the 23 schools listed by DOE as being at risk are “just this year. “I hate to talk in these terms,” she remarked, “But the state has got to do this. Upstate, new construction is almost entirely paid for by the state. That’s not true here, and it’s not right. Why should our schools be built with city money when schools in Hartsdale are reimbursed? We send tax money to Albany so we help reimburse Hartsdale, so why shouldn’t the state help us? The state should assume responsibility.” It’s not too late for the state to allocate funding for DOE’s capital plan. “There’s still time for Albany to get money to us this year,” Grimm remarked. “People should be calling their assemblymembers and state senators.” D-day for decision making, should Albany not come up with funding for the capital plan, is April 1st, according to Brian McGinn, the manager of operations and intergovernmental relations for the SCA, who spoke about the situation at the January meeting of the District 22 Community Education Council (CEC). According to McGinn, DOE is currently rating projects on a scale of one to five, and deciding which things to axe if state money is not forthcoming.
