Report From RIOC's President - Tram Modernization Delay, No Ferry Service Soon, Red Bus Schedule Experiment, Bike Rack Storage & Other RI Isssues

Image From RIOC

RIOC President Steve Shane sends the following report to Roosevelt Island residents. Mr. Shane addresses issues on RIOC Board Nominees, Southpoint Park, Tram Modernization Delay, morning non-rush hour Red Bus Schedule Experiment, Blackwell Playground, Ferry Service, Bike Rack Storage and other issues of importance to Roosevelt Island.

May 29, 2009

1. Board of Directors: Mr. Howard Polivy’s appointment by the Governor and Senate confirmation completed. With Charlee Miller’s announced intention to retire from the Board at the end of her appointed term in June, new nominees will be needed. RIRA’s election on May 19 has produced candidates whose names are now in the pipeline.

2. Southpoint: A press event commemorating the completion of the preservation of the Renwick Ruin and the start of Green Rooms/Wild Gardens was held May 28, 2009. As to the projects:
(A) Renwick Ruins: Stabilization work is complete and the entrances to the building will be boarded up to secure the interior and prevent trespassing.
(B) Green Rooms/Wild Gardens: The contractor is doing rough grading, paths and stone walls. Phase 2 will be the finish grading and capping of the site, utilities, fencing and planting.
(C) FDR Memorial: FERI is working on engineering and permitting with DEC, Army Corp. of Engineers, Coastguard, etc. FERI has delivered its Environmental Analysis to RIOC as lead agency as part of the SEQRA process. The Environmental Analysis has been posted on our web site and disseminated to the WIRE and the blog sites. A public meeting was held on May 27, 2009 where the FERI group again presented their project and answered questions. If all the deliverables required under the Conditional Designation Agreement are in hand, the Board could make its final determination at the June 25th meeting. RIOC has been in consultation with the State’s Division of the Budget and Parks Department to work out funding mechanics for the $4 million State appropriation to RIOC, conditioned on a matching $4 million from the City and at least $8 million from FERI as necessary to complete phase 1. At this writing, many details remain to be finalized.

3. Tram: The birthday of the Tram was celebrated on Monday afternoon, May 18th. Cake was served and a videographer interviewed residents for Tram stories. The kids did their own signboard birthday card.
Overhaul: The schedule for a July 2009 shutdown and December reopening seems to be shifting. The Contractor, POMA, has requested sliding the window of closure to accommodate redesign changes in the structural elements, principally the tower heads and the necessary bracing. Design and fabrication of the various elements is well advanced. Spools of cable have been shipped from Europe. Final details of cabin design are completed and fabrication is underway. Scheduling of tower reinforcing and top replacement, cable pulling, street and park closures, crane locations, etc. with permitting for everything is ongoing, but is dependant on the schedule as established. My best guess is a shutdown in September and a reopening in February. Better coordination with architectural work at the two stations will result. I met again with Community Board 8 on May 5. Architectural work for Tram stations is proceeding. A preliminary sketch of the Manhattan and Island stations will be posted as it is an evolving concept.

4. Projects: Work is ongoing to replace the exterior of the AVAC building, install replacement chambers for AVAC, lighting at Motorgate, repave portions of Main Street, replace the façade at Sportspark and make improvements to PSD. Public Safety has temporarily relocated to 504 Main Street while the work is being done. Replacing the HVAC system for Good Shepherd, fire alarm system at Sportspark, swimming pool resurfacing, and architects for the new Tram Park all approved.

5. Bank: RIOC received advice from NYNB that it intends to close its branch at 615 Main Street on June 6, 2009, but due to the potential of Amalgamated, will stay open until July. We have met with Amalgamated and supplied a letter of support for application to the State Banking Department to allow Amalgamated to open a branch. All signs seem positive. We have promised to maintain a substantial deposit with Amalgamated on the order of $10 million, subject to an emergency.

6. Southtown Buildings 5 and 6 moving toward completion. Landscaping being finished and reports of sales are positive. The roadway in front of the Tram is paved and the fountain in the turnaround will follow.

7. Blackwell Park Playground: In response to the request of some parents, we have emphasized the purpose of the tot playground by increased Public Safety presence to discourage older people from hanging out at the area. No adults unaccompanied by an age appropriate youngster will be permitted.

8. Bicycles: To clear what is becoming an increasing problem, the bike racks at the subway station and tram had notices posted that leaving bikes overnight will not be permitted. After 2AM and before 5AM, Public Safety will remove bikes to increase availability for those who utilize the space as intended. If not reclaimed at Public Safety within 48 hours, the bikes will be donated. The purpose is to encourage bicycle riding by making sure there is space in the racks for commuters and not for long term storage.

9. Fireworks: We are asked to host the fireworks to accompany the 100th birthday of the Queensboro Bridge to be on the evening of May 31 at 9PM. The Southpoint Park will be closed as that is where the fireworks will be staged, but good viewing from along the seawall should be available.

10. Health & Fitness Day this Saturday, May 16. Commendation Ceremony for Public Safety officers, basketball and ping pong tournaments, games and exhibitions, great weather, everyone seemed to have fun.

11. Red Bus: Our joint experiment with RIRA in scheduling to see whether there is an improvement in service has been postponed as the week of initial trial turned out to have the Child School closed because of a Swine Flu occurrence and that followed by a short week. We are going to try, during the week of June 1 to schedule the three red buses on the route from approximately 10 to 11:30 so as to leave the Octagon at 9:55, 10:10, 10:25, 10:40, 10:55, 11:10 and 11:25. Each bus will wait at the Tram to pick up the passengers and return northbound. A 45 minute loop is built in to account for unpredictable event along the way. Predictability should be enhanced, although waiting times may suffer as the buses will be held out of service to meet the schedule.

12. Octagon Field Rest room facilities: Because of the cut in the sewer line at the water tunnel, the facility is out of service. The recently installed facility at the north end of the Goldwater parking lot may be used and a porta-san is in place until the repair work is completed (requiring coordination between DEP and the Octagon). Sorry for the inconvenience.

13. Water Ferry to Octagon: Nothing new to report except that it is extremely unlikely that the City will get the design, permitting, route and construction done this season. Coordination among Federal, City, State and private sources is a real problem that RIOC has nothing to do with.

This message was also published as the RIOC column in the 5/30/09 Main Street WIRE.