Category Archives: Conflict Story
Protected: Lead for Community service piece
Nassau County Youth Programs Suffering at the Hands of Elected Officials by Sarah Moi-Thuk-Shung
Eager volunteers, tables filled with arts and crafts, and a pumped up DJ await as students begin to file in for some Christmas fun. The gym at Gotham Avenue Elementary School will soon be filled with nearly 400 first to fourth graders for this years Christmas party. Patrick Boyle, Executive Director of Gateway Youth Outreach, Inc., along with his staff, put together this party for the children who are a part of GYO at Gotham, as well as students from nearby elementary schools. The toys given to these nearly 400 children, the pizza delivered for them as well as volunteers and staff, and the surprise visit from Santa Claus were all sponsored by GYO. This event would not be the first that GYO has had to sponsor without the help of government funding since the budget cut in July.
“We had programs that had 800 kids in them every day after school. Nassau County in their infinite wisdom decided in July to cut our budget completely. We do have one program that is being run through a state grant at the Gotham Avenue School for 100 children, but that means that 700 kids don’t get programs,” said Boyle. This great decrease in numbers of kids who don’t get programs does not begin to show the devastation of the budget cut.
Parents of children that attend elementary schools in the Sewanhaka Central District who are used to having summer programs and afterschool offered to them through GYO were forced to find alternative programs, most likely at a high cost or at an inconvenient location. Luisa Celis, parent of an 8-year old at the only open afterschool program in the districts says, “This is just a life saver for me. Babysitting is expensive and I cannot work to pay babysitters. If they cut the program, I probably won’t be able to have a job.” Like many parents who work full time, Luisa just needs somewhere for her son to stay for an hour or two until she is off of work and able to pick him up.
Gateway Youth Outreach does not only consist of afterschool programs. The staff of GYO works with students who are on probation and they allow them to do community service as well as provide them with counseling. More counseling is provided for elementary and high school students and their parents who live in Elmont, if there is a problem within the home. Also, GYO deals with superintendent suspensions in order to help a child that is in trouble get back into school faster. “We run a myriad of programs and whatever the need is in the community, that’s what we’ll do,” said Boyle.
GYO is a not for profit corporation that receives a certain amount of money from Nassau County to run the business and provide it’s different programs. The total budget for GYO for the year is about $328,000. For all 43 youth service agencies in Nassau County, the budget was $7.3 million. In relation to the $2.6 billion budget for the whole county, the budget for youth services is a mere 0.002%. “To me it’s just a war on kids and there families, the county is very short-sighted,” said Susanna Isaacson, former member of the Nassau County youth board. After the budget cut, Isaacson was told she either had to retire early or she would be laid off. She decided to retire a year early and did not receive her full 30-year pension.
The politics behind the budget cut made by Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano gets complicated, but Mr. Boyle was able to explain it in layman’s terms. “It was because of a fight between redistricting and bonding, it had nothing to do with youth services,” said Boyle. Politicians were not concerned with the welfare of the children and their families, but more so they were looking out for their own jobs when it came to making the decisions for the budget cuts.
So what is in the future for youth programs in Nassau County, more specifically Gateway Youth Outreach? At 4:29pm on October 11, GYO received a little over 50% of their money back for funding. Now, the program will be able to serve about half as many kids as it did when it received full funding, this means close to 400 kids in total. “They can still use us as a pawn because they have only given us back half of our money and they know we want the other half because that is how we serve as many people as we do,” said Boyle. It is the hope of many working parents that 100% of the youth programs in the Sewanhaka Central District community as well as throughout Nassau County will be restored soon. The guidance that these programs provide for the youth is necessary and imperative to the thriving communities of Long Island.
The Upper West Side’s Battle for Bike Lanes
The M5 bus drives straight down Riverside Drive from 120th Street until 72nd Street and then turns onto Broadway, Manhattan’s main street. It’s a picturesque sight with beautiful post war monuments on 110th Street, lines of trees changing colors leading into Riverside Park, and a universal quiet, with the exception of children’s squeals of excitement in the playground.
But now the quiet is being tarnished with the constant, but necessary, sounds of horns aimed at bicyclists. Bike lanes are nonexistent on Riverside Drive in the Upper West Side and on Columbus Avenue they are cut short. The effort to implement safer bike practices has been an uphill battle for Community Board 7. 
According to the Community Board 7’s October minutes, the attendants “all spoke in favor of extending the lanes.” Their adamant pro-bike lanes attitude stems from the 2-year wait they’ve been forced to sit through on the matter. Yet, up until their December 11, 2012 Community Board meeting, no further steps regarding bike lanes have been resolved.
A spokesperson for the Upper West Side Streets Renaissance Campaign said, “Protected bike lanes help save the lives of pedestrians, cyclists, and drivers.” Bike lanes in New York City are distinguished by the painted white lines on the ground with a stick figure picture of a person on a bike; protected bike lanes are divided from regular traffic with a barrier.
In response to the vote that tied up the plea to continue protected bike lanes on Columbus Avenue, she said “DOT (Department of Transportation) will have to do more research on the topic now. A lot of people, who last night voted against [protected bike lanes], said that they did so because they did not have enough information, which we [UWS Renaissance Campaign] certainly do not agree with.”
A car owner and frequent visitor to the neighborhood, Diane Delgado, said “The streets are too narrow for bikers. I constantly have to stop my car to let them go by. I am not a fan of having bikers on bike lanes or the streets”
Crowded streets are a New York problem, but even more so with bikers cutting off MTA buses and racing too close to a 4,000-pound car. Even though, by law, as stated on the nyc.gov website, bicyclists are allowed to “ride in the street” and “ride in traffic,” they are also encouraged to “ride in the middle of the travel lane” if their distance from a car is too close.
“I can’t believe that the Community Board, yet again, voted against safe streets and against the will of the community,” said Lisa Sladkus on Facebook after a Community Board 7 meeting, “Business is important, but safety trumps all.”
Protected bike lanes might be the solution each party is looking for. With protected bike lanes traffic will not be brought to a halt because of bikers and bikers will be able to ride freely.
Holding Ground: An Historic Town’s Fight Against Franchises
Sun dressed women drink and dance alongside men in summer suits and expensive swim shorts. The live band rocks its own twist to Michael Jackson’s “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’”. Servers dish out clams and sandwiches with smiles while speedboats and motorcycle gangs rumble their engines before parking at the party. This is the pier at Claudio’s Clam Bar in the heat of the Long Island summer. Where cocktails clash with clams and couture in celebration of the season.
Claudio’s Clam Bar & Restaurant is the oldest same family owned restaurant in the United States. It stretches out into the Bay from Main Street in Greenport, a small and picturesque fishing town turned tourist escape for wealthy New Yorkers who look to sleep, swim and spend their summer days outside of the Hamptons.
Today, the post-Sandy scene at Claudio’s is more salvage than celebration. Closed for the season with renovations moving along, locals worry that the storm may have pushed the restaurant and its owners past a breaking point.
“I really hope they can come back from this. You won’t see it on the market, but Claudio’s is always up for sale,” says life-long resident and local librarian Poppy Johnson. “If the price is right, of course.”
The past ten years have seen Greenport real estate double, even during a down market. Business owners fight like sharks for a piece of the up-and-coming quiet beach town with Manhattan variety, but most of what makes Greenport so desirable is already in place.
“I’ve been the owner and operator of Sandpiper for 33 years,” says ice cream parlor owner Paris Alatsis. “You’ll find me or my wife making our homemade ice cream every day of the week.”
Like Claudio’s, Sandpiper Ice Cream attracts visitors with its long family history. The old-fashioned popcorn machine and rotating pretzel stand pay a nostalgic ode to the old days of ice cream parlors, and everybody likes seeing a private owner work his business day in and day out. But, as Mr. Alatsis notes, “Things got harder when Ralph’s came.”
Ralph’s Italian Ices has enjoyed three summers of booming business in Greenport. The new kid on the block sings a familiar tune, as most of Greenport’s tourists have undoubtedly had dessert at a Ralph’s elsewhere in the tri-state area which the budding franchise spans.
“I’ve been getting dessert from Sandpiper since I was in high school. Back then it was the only parlor in town. We still go, but now my kids beg for Ralph’s every time we pass,” explains Julia Robbins, a local realtor.
Gone are the days of the highway diner, replaced by the golden arches of McDonald’s, familiar in both product and price. Like the rest of the world, Greenport is no stranger to franchise businesses outgunning family-owned operations.
But doesn’t that defy the enjoyment of a vacation? To escape from the familiar and experience the unknown?
“It’s tough, when the big companies move in, but people can tell if you love what you do,” explains Aldo Maorana while crafting several espressos behind the counter of his café on Front Street. “It’s all in the service. I’ve been making coffee for thirty years, but I don’t work the shop to sell people coffee. I live my life to share experiences with people, on a human level. “
Aldo’s Café was faced with a threatening intrusion when Starbucks, the unholy symbol of gentrification, moved right across the street. Perhaps it was Aldo’s philosophy on life and business that helped preserve his shop, as an uplifting victory for the home team saw Starbucks pack up and ship out after two seasons, when corporate headquarters saw that the business wasn’t meeting its quota.
“Greenport should be an experience, not just a business. I hope people can understand that,” Aldo explains.
The shop-lined streets of Greenport village have seen coffee competition come and go. New dessert eateries won’t even brew coffee out of respect for the hometown hero who beat out Starbucks. But corporate sharks feed wherever they can find food, and right now—with tourism increasing thanks to direct transport to the town from the Hamptons, Manhattan and even Connecticut—the money situation in Greenport is looking mighty delicious.
The next push is coming from Subway, the world’s largest franchise. Despite a good fight from Greenport Township, including the Building and Zoning Departments who seek to preserve Greenport’s pristine public image, the franchise famous for its $5 footlong subs looks like it will be taking a big bite out of every sandwich business in town very soon.
“There’s always this looming threat that things are going to change,” says Mark LaMain, owner of Butterito’s, formerly Butta’Cakes. LaMain took Superstorm Sandy as a sign to change his shop. He decided to expand from just cupcakes and pastries and include soups and fresh baked sandwiches to the menu. LaMain is proud to serve locally sourced foods.
“The hurricane was one thing, now Subway is moving in. I’m totally revamping the menu—again—to include burritos. And if Chipotle comes next year, then I’ll just take it as a sign to leave the town,” LaMain jokes. “It all comes down to the customer though. Where are they going to eat? Do they want something fresh or do they want something familiar?”
The historic family business of Claudio’s brings in big business. The mom and pop shops that precede it all attribute to the small town charm that attracts tourists and keeps them coming back. But Mark LaMain begs the perfect question. In a summer resort town hours away from the traffic of city living, do visitors want more of the same or something new?
Staten Island Railway Commuters Furious Over Recent Service
By: Teresa Roca
Every weekday morning, Dina Amato begins her commute to Manhattan by boarding the St. George-bound train to the Staten Island Ferry Terminal. As the express train zips by, it abruptly stops between two stations. Sighing in frustration, Amato checks her watch to see if making the ferry will be a possibility. The conductor makes an announcement in an attempt to keep commuters patient, blaming the 10-minute delay on construction and slippery tracks from leaves. With only a few minutes to spare, the train pulls into the St. George station as Amato runs with a crowd of commuters to the turnstiles. The only way Amato can get onto the free ferry is by paying $2.25 for the train that may have just caused her to miss her connection.
This is a typical weekday morning for Staten Island residents who are forced to rely on the Staten Island Railway to commute to New York City.
“I have been taking the train for about 10 years now and I don’t ever remember a time when it was so disrupted by leaves falling, that just doesn’t make sense to me,” said Amato. “If that is the case I think they would have to figure out a solution. You can’t just let people sit there on the train without any explanation other than leaves are falling and you’re going to miss your ferry and too bad. I just think they’re in fumble mode right now and they’re using the leaves as an excuse.”
The Staten Island Railway is the only running transit line in the borough, providing full-time local service and part-time express service between St. George and Tottenville. The 22-stop train is free between stations. The only stops Staten Islanders have to pay the $2.25 fee is when exiting the train at St. George to get onto the ferry and at Tompkinsville station, the second to last stop on the train. Because of heavy delays, many islanders feel that paying this fee is unfair.
Since May 21st, 2012, the Grasmere station has been undergoing construction in an effort to upgrade the station. According to mta.info, the track work at this station will be completed by April 2013. Destruction caused by Hurricane Sandy has added to the delays. The storm damaged the signal system, allowing only two of the tracks to operate. Service won’t be fully restored until March 2013.
“I think since the train services aren’t running at 100 percent right now we shouldn’t have to pay,” said St. Francis College undergraduate Anthony Ruggiero.
Some Staten Islanders feel that a waived fee from the other stations makes up for the cancelled express trains and heavy delays during rush hour.
“With any MTA system, even with the subways, there are always delays and problems,” said Cecilia Tribuzio, an undergraduate student at LIM College. “I feel like the train is pretty good for not having to pay at all the stops.”
For years, commuters would get off at the Tomkinsville station and walk six blocks to the Staten Island Ferry to avoid paying the fare. In 2010, MTA added turnstiles to the station to restrict islanders from getting out of paying at St. George.
“A lot of people used to get off,” said Pino Ciaccia, a longtime commuter who used to beat this system. “I would say half of the people walking to the ferry were people who lived in the area and the other half would take the five-minute walk to save two dollars.”
John G. Gaul, former vice president and chief officer of the railway, stated in an interview to The New York Times that the added turnstiles at Tomkinsville were “in a large measure, but not totally,” to receive fare from people who tried to beat the system. He projected that they would receive about $661,000 in annual revenue by adding turnstiles at Tompkinsville.
“I think it’s fair because people used to leave Tomkinsville and not have to pay for the train when they got off for the ferry,” said Tribuzio. “The MTA system was losing a lot of money.”
Until 1997, conductors of the Staten Island Railway would collect tickets from passengers as they boarded the train from one of the 22 stops. This was eliminated when the MetroCard was introduced. The Staten Island Railway lost about $3.4 million a year in response to the cut. Silive.com reported that in an effort to increase revenue, MTA plans to restore fare collection at every station.
“I don’t think that makes sense because a lot of students use the train system to get to and from school and a lot of elderly people and local people use it,” said Amato. “I mean, it’s still a city suburb so I think a lot of people use that to get around Staten Island.”
Ciaccia feels that paying $2.25 at Tomkinsville and St. George is bad enough, let alone at every station.
“There is a lot of waste because a lot of the time I see work and the work has not been finished or they fix the stations and you see ten people doing nothing all day long. You never see a complete job. MTA should manage their resources and the money they spend in a better way. The easy way is to raise the fare.”
For residents living on the South Shore of Staten Island, the Staten Island Railway is their only source of transportation to midtown Manhattan. Although they can drive to express bus stops, that would involve more time, money and frustration since parking is limited.
“If you want to run to a Knicks game real quick you have to plan a few hours in advance just to get there early for a game that starts at 7,” said Ruggiero. “You have to leave here at least 3:30 p.m. just to get to the city on time. It’s really a pain living in Staten Island, especially with this train.”
When asked how the MTA could improve transportation for South Shore Staten Islanders, Amato insisted that MTA focus on other alternatives.
“I really don’t understand why South Shore Staten Islanders can’t get straight to midtown Manhattan without relying on the train system. I think they should put a ferry down on the South Shore. Utilizing Tottenville would be great since there is a port capability right there. It can make multiple stops up the island and go right downtown.”
Staten Islanders respond to delays and the possible addition of turnstiles at every station.