Since 1975, New York City, in addition to being comprised of five boroughs and 51 City Council Districts, has also been divided into 59 Community Districts, each with a Community Board (CB), composed of up to 50 volunteers.
Every year, borough presidents, who appoint board members, swear in new ones and honor long-serving board members with pins.
According to the City Charter, the boards (Queens has 14) advise the rest of city government on matters of zoning; public safety and any other matters of public concern, including capital and expense budget requests.
Right now, they’re requesting that Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the City Council don’t cut their budget to the point that they can no longer function. Bloomberg has insisted that if dire financial straits mandate cuts to police, fire and hospitals, CBs have to cut as well.
CB advocates point out that their budgets were miniscule to begin with and, after years of cuts, further reductions would leave them unable to function – and some suggest that is the goal.
“The problem is that, despite expressions of support, a lot of elected officials see us as the competition,” said one anonymous CB member who feared retaliation.
Half of each CB’s membership is appointed each year, but half of the members are nominated by the Councilmembers who represent parts of the district. CB lines were drawn to cross Council and Police Precinct lines, to reflect communities.
Advocates also point to CBs as an incubator for budding candidates – both former Queens Borough President Claire Shulman and current Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer started out as CB members, among others.
Critics of the boards, however, have accused boards of “perpetually rejecting” lawful development and business applications. They say CBs often defend the interest of longtime residents against newcomers and often add onerous demands in exchange for voting their approval.
A published report recently accused “dozens” of the more than 600 CB members in Queens of failing “to show up for more than half” of their meetings last year. “That’s an issue for the board chairs and the Borough President to address,” a CB member pointed out. “We have to explain our absences.”
