Roosevelt Island Public Library Selected To Share $250 Thousand In Participatory Budget Funding From NYC Council Member Julie Menin - NYPL RI Branch Manager Carlos Chavez Says Money To Be Used For Tech Upgrades Including New Computers, Laptops, Printers, Fax Systems And WiFi Access

Roosevelt Island and Upper East Side NYC Council Member Julie Menin announced yesterday that the Roosevelt Island Public Library was among the winners in the District 5 Participatory Budgeting voting and will share $250 Thousand with the Webster and 67th Street New York Public Library branches to fund technology upgrades.  

Drum roll please🥁...Excited to announce Participatory Budgeting results! With ~2k votes, 2 ties for 1st & totaling $1 million - winners are:
🔵Schoolyard Resurfacing for M.S. 114 & P.S. 138
🔵Library Technology Upgrades at @nypl
🔵Pathway Repavings at Carl Schurz Park @NYCParks pic.twitter.com/OqQn3S65r1

— Julie Menin (@JulieMenin) April 18, 2022

Roosevelt Island NYPL Branch Manager Carlos Chavez 

reports:

The Roosevelt Island Library is honored to be selected by the community to receive this funding along with our fellow libraries that will be put towards upgrading and refreshing branch technology, which includes desktop computers, laptops, printers, fax systems and WiFi access. Many thanks to Council Member Menin and Roosevelt Islanders for showing their appreciation of the library and we look forward to seeing you at the branch!

According to April 18 press release from Ms Menin:

Council Member Julie Menin is proud to announce the results of her first annual participatory budgeting process within New York City Council District 5, which garnered a total of 1,838 votes and a tie for first between the top two projects. Council Member Menin had previously announced that projects with the most votes up until $1 million has been accounted for will be funded. As a result of this year's success, Council Member Menin will be allocating additional capital funding in order to fully fund the top six voted projects totaling $1,380,000.

The winning projects are as follows:

 

Schoolyard Resurfacing for M.S. 114 and P.S. 138  - 798 votes; This $380,000 project will replace the slippery, degraded mats of the schoolyard that date back to the building's construction over a decade ago. This will improve the overall safety and sanitary conditions for the students

 

Technology Upgrades at New York Public Libraries - 798 votes; This $250,000 project will provide technology enhancements at Roosevelt Island, Webster, and 67th Street Libraries.

 

Pathway Repavings- 747 votes; This $300,000 project will repave 10,000 square feet of paths in Carl Schurz Park. 

“I am thrilled that our Office’s first annual participatory budgeting process was an unqualified success with robust community engagement,” said Council Member Julie Menin. “Not only is my office providing the one million dollars to fund the three winning projects, but in response to the enormous success of this year's cycle and the critical need for capital improvements, I am proud to raise my commitment to $1,380,000 to fund an additional 3. Hundreds of constituents have reached out to our office about these projects so it is great to foster civic engagement in the entire community and help these projects come to fruition. I look forward to growing participatory budgeting in future years!”

 

“All of us are delighted to have this funding to begin the renovation of our school yard. We are eager to revive our yard with new matting that will keep our students happy, safe and clean," said David Getz, the Principal of M.S. 114 and P.S. 138. 

 

“The New York Public Library is grateful to the community for selecting our branches -- Roosevelt Island, Webster, and 67th Street libraries -- to be the recipients of $250,000 for technology improvements," said Sumie Ota, The New York Public Library's Associate Director for the East Manhattan Neighborhood Library Network. "It is an honor to be chosen by those we serve to receive this important funding, which supports the vital resources and services available at our branches. Thank you to Council Member Menin and the residents of the Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island for this wonderful recognition.” 

 

"We are heartened and inspired by the outpouring of support from the community. It is wonderful to see that Carl Schurz Park means so much to so many,” said Judy Howard, Board Chair of the Carl Schurz Park Conservancy. 

 

Additional Projects to be funded:

 

Four NYPD Cameras- 668 votes; This $160,000 project will fund 4 NYPD cameras in Council District 5. These security cameras would enhance crime prevention, provide a sense of security in public areas, and establish surveillance in underserved areas.

 

M.S. 177 Bathroom Renovations- 665 votes; This $225,000 project will renovate one faculty and one student bathroom, both of which are in a general state of disrepair. It would upgrade the sinks, faucets, toilets, soap dispensers, mirrors, tile floors, stalls, paper towel dispensers, and urinals.

 

P.S. 151 Water Bottle Filling Stations- 652 votes; This $64,000 project will install 8 water bottle filling stations to cover each of the five floors of the school.

"We are thrilled to have been granted the funding for new bathrooms at Yorkville East Middle School. This was driven by our students and their families, and we're so happy their voices were heard. The process of participatory budgeting brought an important and meaningful civics lesson to our entire student body. Thank you, CM Menin, for bringing this opportunity to our school," said Christina Riggio, the Principal of M.S. 177. 

 

Participatory Budgeting (PB) is a democratic process in which community members directly decide how to spend part of a public budget. Over 40 project proposals were submitted and vetted by City agencies to ensure compliance and feasibility. Ballot items must be a physical infrastructure project that benefits the public and on City-owned property, have an estimated cost of at least $50,000 but not more than $550,000, and have a lifespan of at least 5 years. Council Member Menin had announced that projects with the most votes up until $1 million has been accounted for will be funded. 

 

In this year’s cycle, residents aged 11 and over of City Council District 5 (Upper East Side's Yorkville, Lenox Hill, Carnegie Hill, Roosevelt Island, Midtown East, Sutton Place, El Barrio in East Harlem) had the opportunity to vote for up to five projects from a range of nine different projects.

 The vote tally was as follows.