3rd (and last) Public Scoping Hearing this Monday, December 1!

Thank you to everyone who came to the BMT Forum last Monday, November 17. CSWA was pleased to be a community partner and thrilled with the turnout. It was truly inspiring to see so many of you actively joining this extremely important process. We hope it encouraged you to contribute your thoughts and your concerns to assure the scope of the BMT environmental impact assessment addresses the needs of our communities.

For those of you who are receiving the CSWA newsletter for the first time because you RSVP'd for the forum, welcome to our mailing list. We hope you will stay for our updates as we continue to build our new neighborhood association.

Here is information Assemblymember Jo Anne Simon shared with the attendees after the meeting:

Here is a YouTube recording of the forum.

What’s next?

• You can make remarks (up to 3 minutes) at the City’s final hearing on the BMT plan next Monday, Dec. 1st, 6pm, Sacred Hearts Church, 125 Summit Street. Register here.​
• Submit written comments through Dec. 11th by emailing espokowski@moec.nyc.gov & HSemel@cityhall.nyc.gov.
• Here is a 1 page handout on the hearing process and key issues.

Resources for you: This folder includes helpful resources from our event partners like sample testimony and reports. This document explains the environmental review process and the BMT worst case development scenarios. Here is a link to the slideshow presentation from the Mayor’s Office of Environmental Coordination. Here is a link to the Draft Scope of Work (DSOW), which is the main document that you can submit comments on to the City.

Also, as mentioned in our last newsletter, the CSWA Greening Committee has been meeting with Matías (Mati) Kalwill, who shared his work on “a potentially affirmative community vision on BMT+ open space”. Members of the Greening Committee are considering how to reference the open space-oriented design principles in their testimony. Here's an updated version of those design principles.​

SIMS Concrete Recycling Facility, 142 Columbia Street

We learned today from Tori Kelly at Senator Gounardes' office that the DOT, which had removed the concrete crushing operation some time ago but continued to use the site to store concrete piles, will "start a larger push to remove the piles on 12/8 and are on track to be fully out by EOY." The DOT told Tori "that they have moved over 600 cubic loads of material over the past month and ship 4 to 6 containers of debris out of the yard each day."

The DOT has not said where the crushing operations have moved to. As our community members most active in the fight to have this facility moved, including Leah Carroll, Sharon Gordon, Jana Weill, Molly Pearson, Victoria Rocco, and Jennifer Diamond have stressed to the DOT and our electeds, this problem won't be solved unless the recycling operation's ultimate home is a non-residential location.

The CSWA Board will send a letter to the DOT requesting this information while citing the continued health and traffic hazards the site has posed even as DOT has been winding down operations.

CSWA Takes Action to address Hazardous Traffic Conditions on Columbia Street

As many of you know, On Nov 20, a little girl was hit at the intersection of President and Columbia and taken to the hospital. This is just one of many incidents that have recently occurred along this stretch. The CSWA Board of Directors wrote our electeds, Community Board 6, and the DOT requesting their assistance to address these long-standing issues which have been intensified by DOT reducing the BQE to two lanes. Read our letter here. So far, we've heard back from CB6 (their transportation committee is discussing it) and Emily Riquelme Beaufort, DOT, who said they are looking into the accident and will reach out once they have more information.

CSWA needs a website! Volunteers, anyone?

Newsletters are great, but now CSWA needs a website. If you'd like to volunteer to set ours up, please respond to this email. Thanks in advance!

Speaking of Volunteers...

We are happy to have more volunteers for our committees, all of which we expect to get going with soon. Please use this form to indicate your interest.

House of Pizza Food Drive Continues!

Thanks to all of you who donated food to the collection box at House of Pizza & Calzone - 132 Union St. House of Pizza & Calzone wants to keep the box for additional donations (probably at least through the holidays). Collected food will continue to be distributed by Food First, Inc, a Brooklyn-based food bank. If you would like us to arrange pick up, please text Zoe at 503-956-1284.
​

Wishing you and your families a happy Thanksgiving!

Questions? Email us at admin@columbiastreetwaterfront.org​

Media Contact:​
Randy Gordon, Acting President
Columbia Street Waterfront Association, Inc.
Phone: 917-593-2674
Email: REGordon27@outlook.com

​

​