It appears that Mayor Bill deBlasio will stand in the city's political coliseum and decree a thumbs down to the present Rockaway/BAT Ferry service.
Speaking in Far Rockaway this past week, the Mayor made it very clear that the need to address the specific post-Sandy recovery problems still faced by hundreds of our neighbors are only "narrow issues" that now must take a "back seat" to his planned, much grander, and still incomplete recovery/resilience plan to ensure that much more pressing issues such as affordable housing, jobs, economic devlopment, education, undocumented immigrants, etc. receive his full attention.
That was about the only thing deBlasio made clear as his responses to questions by the media were, at at best, very general and lacking in specifics and substance.
When asked about a time frame for his all encompassing recovery/resiliency plan, deBlasio would only say that we would all be hearing some more specific informaion regarding the Rockaway area in the "coming months" with a finalized plan being completed sometime thereafter.
In the interim, the Mayor did indicate that although his grand plan will seek to implement a city wide ferry system, the Rockaway/BAT Ferry has been deemed a temporary, interim measure, which will no longer be required at the end of this month because the subways are back running at 100%.
Apparently our good Mayor is unable to effectively deal with immediate (operational) and long term (strategic) issues facing his constituents at the same time.
Note to Mayor deBlasio: The pleasant illusion you worked so hard to present with your sound bites of a planned, economically viable and resilient city with sufficient affordable housing and a city wide ferry service and 25 mph speed limits on all roads flies in the face of the present harsh realities still faced by many post-Sandy communities.
Although a very worthwhile strategic endeavor, prior to throwing the baby out with the bath water while attempting a grand reconfiguration of our city months down the road, why don't you deal with the myriad of pressing operational issues first and fix what is so obviously broken.
Let's fix the hundreds of post-Sandy inhabitable homes and then start building affordable housing.
Let's help restore the still numerous small businesses impacted by Sandy and then start envisioning a grand economic recovery.
And as far as Transportation is concerned, how can you expect to plan, fund and effectively impement a city wide water way ferry system if you can't even find a way to fund the present Rockaway Ferry service on a permanent basis?
Focus on the problems at hand and remember, if you can't help us, for God's sake don't hurt us!
Speaking in Far Rockaway this past week, the Mayor made it very clear that the need to address the specific post-Sandy recovery problems still faced by hundreds of our neighbors are only "narrow issues" that now must take a "back seat" to his planned, much grander, and still incomplete recovery/resilience plan to ensure that much more pressing issues such as affordable housing, jobs, economic devlopment, education, undocumented immigrants, etc. receive his full attention.
That was about the only thing deBlasio made clear as his responses to questions by the media were, at at best, very general and lacking in specifics and substance.
When asked about a time frame for his all encompassing recovery/resiliency plan, deBlasio would only say that we would all be hearing some more specific informaion regarding the Rockaway area in the "coming months" with a finalized plan being completed sometime thereafter.
In the interim, the Mayor did indicate that although his grand plan will seek to implement a city wide ferry system, the Rockaway/BAT Ferry has been deemed a temporary, interim measure, which will no longer be required at the end of this month because the subways are back running at 100%.
Apparently our good Mayor is unable to effectively deal with immediate (operational) and long term (strategic) issues facing his constituents at the same time.
Note to Mayor deBlasio: The pleasant illusion you worked so hard to present with your sound bites of a planned, economically viable and resilient city with sufficient affordable housing and a city wide ferry service and 25 mph speed limits on all roads flies in the face of the present harsh realities still faced by many post-Sandy communities.
Although a very worthwhile strategic endeavor, prior to throwing the baby out with the bath water while attempting a grand reconfiguration of our city months down the road, why don't you deal with the myriad of pressing operational issues first and fix what is so obviously broken.
Let's fix the hundreds of post-Sandy inhabitable homes and then start building affordable housing.
Let's help restore the still numerous small businesses impacted by Sandy and then start envisioning a grand economic recovery.
And as far as Transportation is concerned, how can you expect to plan, fund and effectively impement a city wide water way ferry system if you can't even find a way to fund the present Rockaway Ferry service on a permanent basis?
Focus on the problems at hand and remember, if you can't help us, for God's sake don't hurt us!
Perhaps Danny Ruscillo and Queens Borough President Melinda Katz summed it up best.
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