Broad Channel Civic Association Newsletter

BROAD CHANNEL CIVIC ASSOCIATION MEETING

VFW HALL-SHAD CREEK ROAD

MAY 24 2012--7:30 PM

VOLUME 25  NO -5

President's Message

This year's Annual UCO meeting will be held in conjunction with the May Civic Association meeting. This is the first time that this has been done, and Is a result of a request by the UCO board and a subsequent motion passed by the Broad Channel Civic Association. The intent is to save the time and effort involved in a mass mailing and a separate meeting and to also, hopefully, have adequate representation to have a quorum of residents present. We would ask that all residents try to attend this meeting if possible. The following is the formal request from the UCO Board and notification of this meeting:
The UCO of BC Inc., will hold its Annual Meeting on Thursday, May 24, 2012 @ 7:30pm.  It will take place at the VFW Hall on Shad Creek Road in conjunction with the Broad Channel Civic Meeting.  This section of the newsletter will serve as an admission ticket to obtain your ballot.  We must have a quorum to conduct business.  If you can't attend, please sign this proxy form and give it to a board member or another person attending, but you must sign this form for it to be valid.

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Landowner of:_____________________________________________________________________
Board Members:
Margaret Wagner - President, Joe Minogue - Vice President, Ginger O'Hare - Secretary, Byron Ahlmeyer - Treasurer, Vice Presidents: Dawn McIntyre, Jay Dady, John Girdusky, Erin Malone and Michelle Green

For over thirty years this community has fought against the outrageous proposal to take contaminated fill from the Port Authority's harbor deepening projects and deposit it in the deep "borrow pits" of Jamaica Bay. While this contaminated material is prohibited by federal law from being deposited in the open ocean, a loop hole existed that allowed its placement in the waters of Jamaica Bay. This idea has constantly resurfaced, as the cost of shipping it to specially designated sites is extremely expensive and the Port Authority saw an opportunity to save millions even if, in the process, they create another "love canal". I guess they figured they could always pave over the whole area and make an additional runway if it became an issue. Recently we have heard this concept be raised once again as a viable prospect for this material, yet this time we may have a permanent answer. Assemblyman Goldfeder has introduced Assembly Bill 9871, which would prohibit hazardous dredge material from being placed into any of the borrow pits of Jamaica Bay. If passed, this bill would put this offensive and harmful plan to rest once and for all and remove it from future discussions involving the bay.

A reminder to all anglers -  a saltwater fishing license is required this year! The license is free and can be obtained online at https://nyfgisales.appsolgrp.com/fgnyia/html/index.jsp.

Due to the efforts of Councilman Ulrich, at the time of this writing the Civic representatives and members of the East 12th Road Bungalow Preservation Group were meeting with DEP Commissioner Strickland in an attempt to resolve the red tape that has stood in the way of the City repairing this boardwalk and installing a sewer line for the homes that it serves. These "stilt homes" are a unique part of the history of Broad Channel and New York City.  The City should be working with the homeowners to ensure that these distinctive structures remain a part of our landscape and cut through the bureaucracy that has stood in the way of the necessary upgrades. A report on this meeting will be given at the May 24th Civic meeting. 

In response to a notificiation from the Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers that the west pond at the wild life refuge has a major infrastructure emergency Congressman Turner met with the deputy director of the National Parks Service on May 16th. The congressman insisted that the National Parks Service address the current situation at the west pond. This fresh water pond was created by Robert Moses and has been a key reason that this bird sanctury has become one of the most noted on the east coast. In January the drainage pipe ruptured allowing salt water to back feed into the pond. The Ecowatchers notified the Parks service officials but nothing was done for three weeks . Finally at the end of the three weeks they inserted a temporary block into the pipe but the damage was done. In that time the pond received so much salt water that it now has the same salinity content as the surrounding bay water. This will have a destructive effect on the plant and bird species that depend on a fresh water supply source. The Parks officials need to fix the drainage pipe and drain down the salt water within the park and replace it with fresh water recreating the pond as it was meant to be.

Quote of the Month: --- "There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle." ―Albert Einstein

Respectfully submitted,
Dan Mundy Jr.