On Wednesday night January 15, the City Island Community lead by their Community Organization defeated a request by the NYC Department of Transportation for land use modifications and easements so they could begin building the infrastructure to support a new bridge for City Island.
This project had been planned by the Department under the leadership of the Bloomberg Administration and did not include the participation of the City Island community. This egregious omission lead to the bridge being opposed as planned by the majority of City Island residents.
At the Wensday night meeting before the Community Board 10 Housing and Zoning Committee, the request by the Department of Transportation ( DOT ) for easements and zoning changes was soundly defeated. This lack of support by the committee would be communicated to the full Community Board, and it was expected that the DOT request would also be rejected by the Board.
Yesterday evening the Department of Transportation notified the Board that it would not be seeking Board approval for their easement and zoning modifications at this time. After 16 years of planning, opposing the reasonable requests of the City Island community and not including City Island community leaders in the planning, the Department just now realized that they also did not include as required by law Community Board 12 in this process.
This comedy of errors needs to be put to rest. The Department of Transportation needs to scrap this folly and start afresh. The City Island community needs and deserves a bridge that can safely serve the needs of its residents and visitors. It is strongly suggested that the planning for a new bridge or the extensive rehabilitation of the existing structure begin today. And this time include all the relevant parties as full partners in the planning process.
The days of imperial rule by proclamation appear to be over. So, room at the table needs to be made. Community representatives do not bite. They might surprise everyone at how supportive they can be.
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