Friday, August 1, 2014

Report From RIOC President Charlene Indelicato - New Roosevelt Island Deputy Director Of Public Safety Lynda Marmara, NY State Citizen Emergency Preparedness Training, No Bids On New Tram Elevator, Cultural Center Renovations Completed by December 2014 , Blackwell Park Swing Tampering, Restriping Roads & Much More

Roosevelt Island Deputy Public Safety Director Lynda Marmara Via Strategic Planning And Security Services

Roosevelt Island Operating Corp (RIOC) President Charlene Indelicato sends the following report to the community.
This summer has been a very busy time on Roosevelt Island. Several capital projects have been completed: The Octagon Tennis Courts have been resurfaced, the Tram stations repainted, the entryway of the Good Shepherd Chapel restored, and the northern tip of Lighthouse Park has been reopened for public enjoyment. Many improvements to the Island are still in progress at locations such as the Tram stations, the Cultural Center and on all Island roads. In addition to construction projects, the Outdoor Summer Movie Series and other free public events continue to take place on the Island. For up-to-date information about these and other community notices, you may sign up for RIOC Advisories email alerts on our website: www.rioc.ny.gov.

New Deputy Director of Public Safety: Lynda Marmara

RIOC would like to extend a warm welcome to the newest member of our staff, Lynda Marmara. Marmara has joined us as the new Deputy Director of Public Safety and is well familiar with Roosevelt Island, having been assigned to the community in the past as a NYC police officer. She comes to us with decades of experience in police work and a strong background in emergency management. Marmara previously served as the Director of Public-Private Initiatives for the NYC Office of Emergency Management and most recently owned and led her own security company, Strategic Planning and Security Services, Inc. We are very pleased to have her on our team and look forward to her work on Roosevelt Island.

Citizen Preparedness Training

Next week, the NYS Office of Emergency Management (OEM) will be offering a free Citizen Preparedness training workshop. In addition to valuable information about how to prepare for natural or man-made disasters, each family participating will receive a free Citizen Preparedness Corps Response Starter Kit for attending. The kit includes a first aid kit, emergency food and water, AM/FM radio, flashlight, and more useful items.

The training will take place on August 6 at the Manhattan Park Theater Club (8 River Road) at 6 PM. While this session is free, participants must register in advance at  www.prepare.ny.gov/training-events in order to attend. We hope to see you there!

Outdoor Summer Movie Series

RIOC’s Outdoor Summer Movie Series (now located at Firefighter’s Field) continues on Saturday, August 9 with a screening of The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug. Come out to the field at 7 p.m. for music, film trivia and night of movie fun under the stars. Food and drink will be available for purchase, bring a blanket or lawn chair. On Saturday, August 23rd, don't miss the final screening in the series, featuring the James Bond movie Goldfinger as well as a locally produced short A Necessary Music. This unique short film was shot on Roosevelt Island and features seventeen of our residents as actors. We hope to see you there!

Lighthouse Park

We are extremely pleased to be able to reopen the northern tip of Lighthouse Park for the community’s enjoyment. Contractors are currently completing a construction checklist and addressing a few final items to bring the project to completion, so expect to see workers in the vicinity of the park’s footbridges. While certain areas may be intermittently cordoned off to allow work to take place, the park area surrounding the Lighthouse will remain open to the public.

Cultural Center

Work on the Cultural Center at 504 Main Street has progressed. Demolition and removal of the water-damaged materials inside the Center was completed over the summer, and the floor fill has been poured to create a solid foundation. Contractors are currently re-framing the walls and performing electrical work. This project is scheduled to be completed in December 2014. We know how important the Cultural Center is to the community, and we look forward to reopening a new and improved space for public use.

Tram Elevators

Bids for the design and construction of new elevators at the Manhattan Tram Station were due last week on July 21; however, no proposals were submitted. This project is a very high priority for RIOC, and we are committed to finding a skilled contractor to carry out this important work. We will continue explore our options and will push to keep this project moving forward on schedule.

Re-Striping Roosevelt Island’s Roads

Over the past few weeks, the Island’s streets and Helix Ramp have been re-striped by contractors working with our Engineering department. Refreshing the paint job helps ensure that important street markings, especially at crosswalks and stop signs, are highly visible to both vehicles and pedestrians. Further re-striping work is scheduled to take place in the near future.

Blackwell Children’s Playground Swing

At the Blackwell Park Children’s Playground, a low toddler swing has repeatedly been tampered with. After repairs to the swing were made on July 7, the strap and related hardware were entirely removed from the area. RIOC will make repairs shortly and again restore the swing for young children to use. In the interest of safety, we ask that visitors to the park refrain from removing any hardware at the playground and contact us immediately to report any repairs that need to be made. If you have any information related to the play equipment’s disappearance, we encourage you to contact the Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department at 212-832-4545.

Tennis Permits

As a reminder, the newly resurfaced Octagon Tennis Courts are open for permit holders. If you would like to play, you may purchase a Tennis Permit online through the RIOC website – please visit us at rioc.ny.gov/tenniscourts.htm for more information or to apply.

Tram Inspection Service Changes

Leitner-Poma, operator of the Roosevelt Island Tramway, has advised that both Tram cabins are undergoing a comprehensive safety inspection. The tests began on Monday, July 28th and are scheduled to be completed by Friday, August 8th. One Tram cabin must be taken out of service during the inspection, requiring a change to its operating schedule. Please visit our website (rioc.ny.gov) for an updated operating schedule.

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