Notification of Weekend (Saturday) Work by EIC Associates on W11th and 12th Roads

Good morning,

The Contractor will be working this Saturday, February 11th on West 11th and West 12th Roads.

Have a good weekend,

Fern Weinreich

Community Construction Liaison

Broad Channel Project   ID: HWQ1182A

Field Office Number: 646-300-4351

Cell Number: 917-854-8341

broadchannelccl@gmail.com

NWS - Special Weather Statement

Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service New York NY
921 AM EST THU FEB 9 2017

CTZ005>012-NJZ006-104-106-NYZ068>075-078>081-176>179-091545-
Southern Middlesex-Southern Fairfield-Northern New Haven-Southern New
London-Northern Fairfield-Northern New London-Northern
Middlesex-Southern New Haven-Hudson-Eastern Bergen-Eastern
Essex-Southwest Suffolk-Northern Nassau-Southern
Queens-Bronx-Northeast Suffolk-Southern Nassau-Rockland-Kings
(Brooklyn)-Putnam-Northern Queens-Northwest Suffolk-Southeast
Suffolk-Southern Westchester-New York (Manhattan)-Richmond (Staten
Is.)-Northern Westchester-
921 AM EST THU FEB 9 2017

...AN AREA OF HEAVY SNOW WILL AFFECT NEW LONDON...FAIRFIELD...
MIDDLESEX...NEW HAVEN...HUDSON...EASTERN BERGEN...PUTNAM...QUEENS...
RICHMOND...BRONX...NEW YORK...KINGS...ROCKLAND...WESTCHESTER...
SUFFOLK AND NASSAU COUNTIES...

At 914 AM EST, widespread heavy snow combined with north winds of 20
to 30 mph will reduce visibilities making any outdoor activities
hazardous.

Maximum hourly snowfall rates will range from 1 to just over 3
inches, causing snow to rapidly accumulate as temperatures fall
through the 20s. Isolated rumbles of thunder will accompany the
heavy snowfall rates.

Travel is extremely dangerous.

The Rockaway Times (Thursday, February 9th, 2017 edition)

Rockaway Times 2917 by Peter J. Mahon on Scribd

NWS - Winter Coastal Storm Briefing #4

CSB#4 

At 4 am NWS now indicates snow accumulations of 10 to 14 inches

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service New York NY
400 AM EST Thu Feb 9 2017

...Powerful Winter Storm Today...

...WINTER STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM EST THIS
EVENING...

* Snow Accumulations...10 to 14 inches.

* Locations...New York City, Southern Connecticut, the Lower
Hudson Valley and Northeastern New Jersey.

* Hazard type...Heavy snow.

* Impacts...Hazardous/dangerous travel due to snow covered roads
  and poor visibilities. Blowing and drifting snow is likely.
  Local power outages with downed trees and power lines possible.

* Winds...North 15 to 25 mph with gusts 30 to 35 mph.

* Visibilities...one quarter mile or less at times.

* Temperatures...Falling into the 20s.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A Winter Storm Warning for Heavy Snow means severe winter weather
conditions are expected or occurring. Significant amounts of snow
are forecast that will make travel dangerous. Only travel in an
emergency. If you must travel...keep an extra flashlight...food...
and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency.

NWS - Winter Storm Warning now in effect for Broad Channel

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service New York NY
1145 PM EST Wed Feb 8 2017

...WINTER STORM WARNING NOW IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM EST
THIS EVENING...

* Snow Accumulations...8 to 12 inches...locally higher.

* Locations...New York City, Nassau County, Southern
  Connecticut, the Lower Hudson Valley and Northeastern New
  Jersey.

* Hazard type...Heavy snow.

* Impacts...Hazardous/dangerous travel due to snow covered roads
  and poor visibilities. Blowing and drifting snow is likely.
  Local power outages with downed trees and power lines possible.

* Winds...North 15 to 25 mph with gusts 30 to 35 mph.

* Visibilities...one quarter mile or less at times.

* Temperatures...Falling into the 20s.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A Winter Storm Warning for Heavy Snow means severe winter weather
conditions are expected or occurring. Significant amounts of snow
are forecast that will make travel dangerous. Only travel in an
emergency. If you must travel...keep an extra flashlight...food...
and water in your vehicle in case of an emergency.

Between the Bridges in Broad Channel - Valentine Karaoke Party!

Between the Bridges in Broad Channel

by
Peter J. Mahon
February 9th, 2017

Sing to Your "Valentine" this Saturday at the VFW

Valentine's Day, an annual holiday celebrated on February 14th, originated as a Western Christian liturgical feast day honoring one or more early martyred saints named Valentinus, and is recognized as a significant cultural and commercial celebration in many regions around the world, although it is not a public holiday in any country.  Now we Catholics are a strange bunch and have a thing for martyred saints.  Growing up in Woodside in the late 50's I attended St. Sebastian grammar school where the good nuns would continually implore us to emulate our school's namesake.  The problem was that everywhere I looked throughout the school I would see a painting or statue of good old St. Sebastian tied to a tree in the throes of a violent death with several arrows sticking out of his torso.  To be honest with you, he did not look like a happy camper! 

Saintly martyrdom aside, I have always thought that Valentines Day is a faux holiday celebration created by an insidious conspiracy on the part of our nation's candy, floral and greeting card industries. It's the one day of the year a young guy can walk into a flower shop and not be greeted with the "I wonder what he trying to apologize for?" sympathetic stares of staff.  Of course, on the brighter side of this holiday, the candy, floral and greeting card moguls are only after my hard earned cash and are not entertaining any thought of tying me to a tree as an archery target...at least I hope not! 

Those of you who have followed this column since the get-go know that a few years back I sustained a rather egregious brain fart which led me to believe it might be a good idea that, rather than spend my kid’s inheritance like a drunken sailor on candy, flowers, cards, etc., I would attempt to make Valentine’s Day more of an educational experience for the entire family.  Needless to say, nothing good came from this horrendous brainstorm and, in fact, it turned out to be a very, very bad idea.  The repercussions of my ill fated attempt to thwart this commercialized "Holiday of Love" served little more than to immediately place me back in the conspiratorial camps of candy, cards and flowers forevermore...if for nothing more than my own personal safety.

This year, in addition to candy, cards and flowers the  Broad Channel VFW has added a terrific spin to the pending holiday with a Valentines Karaoke Party this Saturday evening (February 11th) starting at 8 pm.  A $10 per person donation at the door will include a cash bar accompanied by a free light buffet and the opportunity to saunter up to the stage and grab a mic to serenade the love of your life and entertain your friends and neighbors with your very own rendition of a romantic ballad of your choosing. For a nominal fee VFW staff will video your karaoke performance for immediate posting to the entire social media spectrum.  On the other hand, for a much greater fee, VFW staff will ensure no videos of your performance are made whatsoever!  Of course the evening will also include a 50/50 and other raffles.  For reservations or additional information call or text the VFW's answer to Bobby Flay, our very own Chef Bob "Pro" at 917-817-6396.

Keeping in mind it is said that "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing", you might like to know that Karaoke is a word formed from putting two Japanese words together. "Kara" that comes from Karappo and means empty and "Oke", shortened from Okesutura meaning "orchestra". So Karaoke means "empty orchestra". Now armed with that little fact, go forth and be dangerous!  

It's for a great cause and, as always, all donations and proceeds will go to support the Post’s activities in supporting our disabled veterans.  So spread the word about this event and grab your best girl or guy and come on down to the VFW's Valentine Karaoke party this Saturday evening.   

Broad Channel, why would anyone want to live anywhere else?

Broad Channel's Build It Back's Tough-Talking New Coordinator Just Wants to 'Get S--t Done'

By Katie Honan | February 8, 2017 5:25pm

@katie_honan

Lou Mendes answers questions at a Broad Channel Civic meeting. (DNAinfo/Katie Honan)

BROAD CHANNEL — Standing in the front of the packed Veterans of Foreign Wars Hall on Shad Creek Road, Lou Mendes, who joined Build It Back months before, faced a group of residents for the first time.

Many had moved out of their homes only to wait months for work to begin. They'd been through the Build It Back bureaucracy — with construction managers who wouldn't return their calls and delays — since they first signed up for the program in 2013.

Mendes answered their questions, giving out his personal cellphone number and inviting anyone to call him with questions. 

"It's not going to continue to be a s--t show," he promised.

​"​I'm not here to tell you I'm going to pull rabbits out of a hat, but I'm here to tell you the truth."  

To him, that truth means working to find more contractors so they can elevate more houses and finish more jobs. He's bringing a trailer to the neighborhood so inspectors and architects all work out of one place. And he's speeding up construction starts after people move out of their homes. 

"I am not playing this six month game," Mendes said, referring to the historically long delay between when people are told to move out of their home for construction and when construction actually begins.

The audience of residents — many of whom have been fed up by empty promises about construction in the years since Hurricane Sandy flooded their homes on Oct. 29, 2012 — seemed to appreciate the straight talk. 

One resident spoke up — not to offer a question or a complaint, but to shake Mendes' hand. He walked to the front, and the handshake turned into a hug. 

Speaking of Mendes' tough talking demeanor, Dan Mundy Jr., the Broad Channel Civic Leader president, acknowledged, "He's a little bit of a throwback."

But he said Mendes strikes a chord with locals.

"I think Lou has resonated with people," said Mundy Jr., who has sparred with the city over past delays.

Staten Island Borough President James Oddo said within 30 seconds of meeting Mendes, "I wanted to get out of my chair and hug him, and ask him where he's been the last four years," he said.

Mendes "took a flamethrower to the place," he said, quoting Al Pacino. 

"I'm less concerned with a bureaucrat's bruised ego or dented feelings, and more about people getting home faster," Oddo said.

"When a guy likes this comes along, it's like in professional wrestling when you're getting beat up in the ring and the music changes and the good guy's in the corner," Oddo said. "We may give him his own entrance music next time he's in Borough Hall."

Mendes said he's confident that years of dealing with the toughest jobs can help him take Build It Back across the finish line.

"My whole career, I was involved in ‘get it done yesterday’ projects," Mendes said recently on West 13th Road in Broad Channel, where nearly nine houses have been elevated in 10 days.

"I like challenges like that."

His first government job was with the New York State Facilities Development Corporation in the 1980s, which was tasked with managing state-run buildings after investigative reports exposed rampant abuses and deplorable conditions at the Willowbrook State School for mentally-disabled children and adults on Staten Island.

He joined the Department of Design and Construction in the early 1990s, working on bio-terror labs, the NYPD's forensic lab, building and crane collapses. 

Before returning to the DDC to oversee logistics and coordinating the multi-agency requirements needed for each individual home involved in Build It Back, he was the executive vice president of design, construction and facilities at the 9/11 Memorial Museum. 

He got that job after overseeing demolition and cleanup at Ground Zero following the Sept. 11 attacks.

"That was not easy," he said of his time overseeing cleanup efforts at the pile of rubble left when the towers collapsed after the terror attacks, trapping firefighters and office workers beneath.

He knew Amy Peterson, the director of Build It Back, from when they worked together at the DDC. He said she asked him several times to join Build it Back, which was on track to blow Mayor Bill de Blasio's Oct. 29, 2016 deadline for completion while also racking up millions of dollars in cost overruns. 

"Amy tried to convince me a couple of times," Mendes said, with a smile. "And then she succeeded."

He shrugged off reports that he bullied DDC staffers once he began work, saying the city had been incredibly supportive and involved. He said everyone appreciates what he's trying to do.

"I just like to get s---t done," he said.

Peterson said Mendes has proven he's "the right person to manage the toughest, most challenging, construction projects in New York City." 

"I am so grateful he is working with us on Build It Back helping more and more homeowners return to safe and resilient homes every day," she said in an email​.

Mendes said his biggest challenge has been getting more contractors to work on jobs, and managing the complex program. 

Bills passed in the fall by the City Council have helped streamline inspections, but there are still challenges.

In Broad Channel, where streets flood during high tide, construction is at the mercy of the moon cycle. (Mundy, Jr. gives the tide calendar to new contractors working on repairs and elevation.)

Homes have outdated permits — many filed by architects who are no longer alive — or major structural issues like termites only discovered once a house is elevated.

To Mendes, it's just another problem to fix.

"At the end of the day it’s about the people," he said. "We got to get people home."

At the Broad Channel Civic Meeting, he promised to complete projects by October — and guaranteed to get Jenn Keegan, 37, back into her home on Demerest Road in Broad Channel by the time she's slated to get married in June.

Keegan said she moved out of her home in April, only to watch it stay untouched for months.

"I missed summer in my house, I've missed Christmas, I've missed Thanksgiving," she said.

But she said as soon as Mendes joined the program, work on her home began. 

"I went out of my way at the end of the [Broad Channel Civic] meeting to go shake his hand," Keegan said. "I left feeling a lot better after hearing him speak."

"I think he knows what he’s doing, he sounds like he has the knowledge, he sounds like he’s a go getter," Keegan said.

"And if he gets me in my house, he's invited to the wedding."

NYC Public Schools Closed due to pending winter storm

Notification issued 2/8/17 at 7:30 PM. Due to the winter storm, the New York City Department of Education has announced that all public schools will be  closed Thursday, February 9th, 2017.

Student after school activities and PSAL games are cancelled and all yellow bus service is suspended. 

Call 311 if you have any questions. For additional information, please visit: nyc.gov/schools.

NWS - Coastal Winter Storm Briefing #3

CSB#3