Democracy May or May Not Be Coming to Roosevelt Island - It's Up To Us!

Purple finger image from The Bwog

Today's NY Sun reports on the upcoming February 5 election to nominate Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC) Board of Directors. According to the Sun:

As part of a new experiment, Roosevelt Island residents on Tuesday will vote to designate six nominees to the state corporation that runs the area, and Governor Spitzer will then choose whether to appoint any of the nominees. Previously, the governor has had complete control over the appointments, leading to friction with some in the community.

According to Roosevelt Island Residents Association President Matt Katz:

"We're trying to bring some taste of democracy to the island,"

And:

He referred to state government's current role in the island's affairs as "taxation without representation."

But not so fast. According to RIOC President Steve Shane:

... the elections would not necessarily be successful. "If the people who are produced out of this are not sufficiently representative or appropriate to the enterprise, which includes being vetted by the state police, then it's not going to work. So we'll see how democracy goes."

Here's my take on the RIOC election.
Come meet the candidates for RIOC Board Nominees on Saturday, February 2, 1PM at the Good Shepherd Church Community Center. If you can't make it there watch the video from Press HD.

There is also the Democratic and Republican Presidential Primary election to be held on the same day, February 5.

Remember to vote!

UPDATE 10:55 - Roosevelt Island 360 on RIOC nominee elections