Bronx Park East Community Association “Inside Scoop” 1st Edition

Column by Raphael Schweizer

 

B-PECA’s Inside Scoop: Why Pelham Parkway Is Cleaner

Here’s the first of Bronx Park East Community Association’s (B-PECA) sharing of very important, though little-known, knowledge of why some city services are the way they are in the Allerton and Pelham Parkway communities, and the Bronx as a whole.
You may have read a few weeks ago in this very newspaper’s editorial section an essay on the need for more full-time City Parks Workers (CPW’s) for Bronx Parks District 11 & 14.
And you may have noticed that Pelham Parkway has begun to look a lot cleaner lately.
Well, sorry to burst your bubble Raph, but the two have nothing to do with each other (Raph’s head bows in shame).
You may not know this, but the City Parks Department has just added Pelham Parkway to their list of city parks that are “rated”!
“Rated” parks, such as Central Park and other popular, heavily-utilized green spaces are graded periodically by the Parks Department to ensure that each of these green spaces meets this cleanliness and usability standards laid out by City Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver & Co.
And just a few months ago, the expansive, ethereal 2-mile landscape of Pelham Parkway was added to this “rated” parks list.

What “Rated” Means

So, in order to ensure that Pelham Parkway lives up to the new, and much welcomed, standards that Parks Department lays out, something very RARE happens: Pelham Parkway is given an adequate amount of staffing to clean and maintain “Our Central Park”, as Assemblyman Gjonaj calls it.
Yes, this is tongue-in-cheek.
But it really is SO long overdue that our jewel Pelham Parkway receives enough CPW’s and staff to clean up the grass and empty the garbage bins along the expanse of the Parkway.
That’s why there’s so many more garbage bins along the westbound main road and near the grassy areas utilized for picnicking.
And that also may also be why stumps are being removed so quickly after sick/dead trees are cut down. After all, a stump looks unattractive and would take away from the “grade” that the Parkway receives if audited by Mitchell Silver & Co.
That’s right Pelham Parkway, it’s Back to School for you!
I hope your Mother Nature is happy with your report card this term. Otherwise, it’s no mulch for you!

Parks Workers Still Needed!

But seriously, Pelham Parkway being “rated” is a good thing. However that doesn’t take away the “equity” factor when it comes to the staffing of Bronx Parks District 11 & 14.
District 11, which contains all of Pelham Parkway and over 10 heavily-used playgrounds, and District 14 which contains Bronx Park East from Pelham Parkway North to East 233rd Street (including Waring Playground) are still chronically under-staffed.
That means emails to B-PECA about overflowing garbage cans at Allerton Avenue & Bronx Park East. That means emails to B-PECA about litter accumulation in the “Green Street” at Williamsbridge Road & Mace Avenue.
That REALLY means that Community Leaders & Elected Officials have to ensure that this years 2015-2016 City Budget gives these two Parks Districts at least 3-4 more City Parks Workers to make up for years of budget cuts and downsizing.
I look forward to the day when I lead a park clean-up and there’s nothing to actually clean up.
It’s time to give our area the level of City Services it deserves.
And it’s time to give Parks Supervisors Clinton Johnson & Gloria Daniels a break from 60-70 work weeks.
More City Parks Workers for Bronx Parks District 11 & 14!!

Monthly Meeting TODAY

Our Bronx Park East Community Association “B-PECA” monthly community meeting is Thursday, November 13th, the date of the publication of the newspaper which graciously prints our columns and picture each week (thanks, Laura & John).
B-PECA’s guest speaker will be the Bronx Public Affairs Manager for Con Edison, Rolando Infante.
There’s alot of Con Ed digging activity going on in our community, so we’re gonna find out what it’s all about!
The meeting takes place from 6:30-8:45pm inside of “CenterLight”, who is gracious enough to give us a meeting space free-of-charge. The CenterLight building is located at 2401 White Plains Road, which is just north Waring Avenue and directly across the street from Walgreens (and those lovely new B-PECA-painted lamp posts at Waring & White Plains Rd.).
If you’re a senior, and a dues-paying member of our organizaiton, be sure to attend the meeting to get the chance to RSVP for CenterLight’s Annual “Pre-Thanksgiving Luncheon”.
That’s right, one of the perks of paying $20-a-year to support your local civic advocacy group: Free Lunch. Wink-wink.

Question? Concerns? Kvetches?

As always you can contact B-PECA (and that pony-tailed dude who walks the streets at the “witching hour”) 24/7 by texting/calling 347-654-7044, or by emailing bxparkeast@gmail.com .
Texting us gets the quickest response.
But if you’d like to kvetch in public (I’m really smirking slyly when writing this) you can kvetch on our facebook group where anyone can post questions, pictures or kvetches for ALL to see.
Simply go to www.facebook.com/groups/bxparkeast and click “request to join”.
Thank you to new group member Marcia Guss for offering her positive review of City Island Theater Group’s “Evita” Performance (which wasn’t a kvetch!)
That’s why social media is so popular; because it’s so effective, and democratic.
Until next week’s column, or the week after, please remember: SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL PUBLIC SCHOOL.
Attend their winter concert. Attend their play. Offer to hel submit a Bronx Times write-up and picture of the school’s positive activities going on, such as P.S. 89’s building of a community garden.
Walk. Speak to people. Connect.
Think simple. After all, Life is simple.
And M.S. 135, P.S. 76, P.S. 96 and Christopher Columbus High School Campus are SIMPLY full of potential.
GO PUBLIC SCHOOLS!

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