October 2021 was a month of contrasts for Roosevelt Island. Beautiful merged with painful and frustrating, suggesting a rudderless passage with little vision and less direction.
By David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
October 2021, the Contrasts
Brutal Mishandling of Historic Cherry Trees
The damages so historic and monumental they force themselves to the top of the page. In the last week of October 2021, RIOC sent a crew with a chainsaw out butchering Roosevelt Island’s historic row of Cherry Trees on the West Promenade.
“Pruning,” the crew called it, when challenged, but fruit tree pruning is not about hacking off branches wholesale from the bottom.
Pruning involves judicious shaping, allowing maximum sunlight for photosynthesis and esthetics.
And it should never be done in autumn because this leaves the tree vulnerable in winter and curtails energy storage for spring.
Exposed, RIOC made no effort to explain the blunder.
Beauty among the beasts…
But it wasn’t all ugly and painful. Sometimes, the state stayed out of the way long enough to allow Roosevelt Island’s special beauty in.
RIOC Board Controveries
A report showed that the RIOC board fell short of a legislated minimum of five resident members.
Two former residents moved, but when our report called for both resigning, only one complied. Jeffrey Escobar stepped down. David Kapell, though, never a full time resident to begin with, refused.
By month’s end, RIOC chief counsel Gretchen Robinson overruled community protests, cobbling together a misdirection excuse.
October 2021 on Roosevelt Island, more views
RIOC’s strangely secret bank open house gave the state agency a shot at doing the right thing, pushing a viable alternative for bringing direct banking back to Main Street. They failed miserably, leaving us wondering what elected officials Rebecca Seawright and Ben Kallos were doing there, participating in this scheme.
Memorial for A Dog Killed by an Illegal Car on the West Promenade
RIOC overreacts, creating new conflicts…
So, how does RIOC really feel about Roosevelt Island…?
Speaking of seating….
What RIOC promised for Southpoint Park, the east shoreline…
What we have as of October 2021… all rocks and hard surfaces, trees and grass banished.
As super secret RIOC refuses to explain…
Progress in Lighthouse Park, October 2021
Thank you, Hudson Related: Ending October 2021 on a High Note
More from the Roosevelt Island Daily
- Northern Boulevard Safety Concerns Prompt Urgent Calls for Action in QueensQueens officials and residents are raising Northern Boulevard safety concerns, calling for urgent city action to address dangerous crossings and improve pedestrian protections along this busy corridor.
- Northern Boulevard Safety Concerns Spark Calls for Major RedesignNorthern Boulevard safety concerns have led community members and officials in Queens to demand a comprehensive redesign, citing unsafe conditions and a need for urgent action.
- Three New Schools Open in Western Queens Amid Ongoing Classroom OvercrowdingThree new schools have opened in Western Queens, giving some relief in classroom overcrowding, but families still face capacity challenges and tough implementation issues this fall.
- Certified 9/11-Related Cancer Cases Double at Northwell HealthNorthwell Health has seen a sharp increase as certified 9/11-related cancer cases double, transforming care for survivors and responders in the New York region.
- Long-Term Health Effects Linked to 9/11: 25 Years LaterThe 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks brings renewed focus to long-term health effects linked to 9/11, with ongoing needs for survivors, first responders, and affected communities.
Unequal Bargains
On June 18, the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation’s Real Estate Development Advisory Committee gathered to discuss ground leases, the master retail lease, and the ten additional years being offered under the Island’s master lease. Howard L. Polivy, the committee’s chair, opened the meeting as a longtime host shows guests through a familiar house, pointing out the furniture as if it had never moved an inch.
2 COMMENTS