I want to include one of the hottest jobs that all of us take for granted - the job of a sanitation worker! They are routinely out there doing their jobs in the heat and humidity daily. They not only remove the usual household garbage and recyclables, but in addition, the heavy, smelly and wet garbage such as couches, chairs, rugs and books placed out by homeowners whose basements and garages were flooded during the July and August storms. What would our communities be like without them?
Ellen Giordano
Maspeth
In memory of ‘Scooter’
Phil Rizzuto has left many of us saddened by his passing. However, he has left for the great diamond in heaven and God will be waiting for him with open arms. I think when God greets, “Scooter,” he might say, “Holy Cow I have another Yankee for my team. Scooter you have done well and you’ve hit a home run for heaven for the life you’ve led.” I think God is a baseball fan and loves the game for what it represents and that is, it tests the character and the true spirit of man. May you rest in peace Scooter for you were great on and off the field.
Frederick R. Bedell Jr.
Bellerose
Public disclosure abuse
City Hall seems to have decided to deal with the pesky problem of franchises and concessions, which exist mostly in parks and other public spaces, by eliminating the public from the public review process.
In the middle of summer, with only a few day’s notice instead of the legally required thirty days notice, the Franchise and Concessions Review Committee - an executive agency whose votes are controlled by the Mayor - announced that it would vote on August 16 to limit requirements that the committee inform elected officials, affected agencies such as community boards and the public of new or renewed concessions. This move, described as a way to enhance government efficiency, effectively eliminates the opportunity for meaningful review and comment.
The bedrock of democratic governance is public disclosure. That requires timely information about the things that really matter in this city - like who controls our public space and how concessions placed in them are chosen. To meet that goal, the Queens Civic Congress, the city’s only neighborhood based, borough-wide coalition, opposes any attempt to reduce public discussion and supports meaningful changes in the rules for concessions to trigger public review of many concessions that today escape public scrutiny.
The Mayor’s PLANYC2030 calls for momentous changes in how government will treat our parks. Now is not the time to keep the public in the dark about how our parks will be managed. Now is the time for discussion that is more open, evaluation and determination.
Patricia Dolan
Executive Vice President
Queens Civic Congress
Flushing
Fix the streets
Last week, we woke up to chaos after a severe thunderstorm and tornado. Streets, homes and subway lines were flooded. The New York subway system was shut down for virtually an entire day, while millions of dollars of damage was done to homes and lives were put at risk. Slowly, but surely, the city’s entire infrastructure is falling apart.
Over the years, New York City residents have suffered from massive blackouts due to a failing power supply grid, street flooding, an escalating number of potholes in the streets, an obsolete sewer system and bungling bureaucracy. We call upon all city, state and federal lawmakers to get down to work by earmarking funds and creating solutions, so that our deteriorating quality of life improves.
We desperately need our representatives to study these areas of severe neglect and start providing some relief. They must act now. Protect our homes, and the environment. Save us from the despair of overwhelming disaster.
Albert Baldeo, Esq.
Community Advocate
Ozone Park
Wakeup call on infrastructure
Your excellent editorial “Fix the Infrastructure” (August 16) should be must reading for all public officials.
City Council Finance Committee Chair David Weprin’s recent call for a commission to study the city’s infrastructure needs makes one wonder where he has been all these years. Real leadership anticipates future problems and deals with them in a timely manner rather than reacting to emergencies.
Every municipal agency has both short- and long-term capital plans. The Comptroller, Office of Management and Budget, Independent Budget Office, Planning Department and Regional Planning Association have all issued reports on infrastructure needs.
As Finance Committee chair, Weprin could have advocated allocating sufficient funding to support proper levels of maintenance and future capital funding for replacement or new capital construction.
His assumption that both the state and federal governments will fork over more funding is nave, especially as he is boasting of a multibillion-dollar city budget surplus.
Albany and Washington have budget deficits in the billions and trillions respectively.
The solution is not to call for the creation of an infrastructure commission that would just duplicate what everyone else already knows. The real solution is finding the funds necessary to pay the bills for improvements.
Larry Penner
Great Neck
Letters To The Editor
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