At least publicly, nobody saw this coming, but this fresh morning on Roosevelt Island is more Wow! than “Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead.” RIOC’s out-of-the-blue reversal is all positive. Sure some clouds linger on the horizon, but the old storms have passed.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
It was like, after a long cold winter, a burst of warm spring weather swept over Roosevelt Island. Like spring, the air felt full of promise, and morning on Roosevelt Island is here.
We don’t know what happened behind the scenes that led to the suspension of Shelton Haynes‘s tenure as RIOC leader. We may never, but we can still be thankful. And we can thank whoever or whatever brought change to Roosevelt Island.
The temporary removal of Haynes along with sidekick, Chief Counsel Gretchen Robinson, is one thing, but what emerged from the background is something else entirely.
Morning on Roosevelt Island
Who could have known that stifled behind the cold brick barriers built around RIOC was a group of leaders as eager for change as Roosevelt Islanders were?
But out from behind the bunker they came.
It started with the stunning announcement that, due to “workplace issues,” Haynes and Robinson were put on “paid administrative leave.” It fit with current events, but after fending off numerous investigations and lawsuits, the pair had seemed firmly planted in the hearts of Team Hochul.
Invincible. Then, suddenly – not.
New faces come forward…
When Haynes and Robinson moved aside, the single most surprising thing was that two recent hires took the reins, not higher-ranking and longer-tenured managers, Acting COO Mary Cunneen or Vice-President Tajuna Sharpe. That was a message in itself.
Instead, RIOC’s board appointed Chief Financial Officer Dhruvika Patel Amin, just five months into her tenure, and Gerrald Ellis, Deputy General Counsel, with just eighteen months under his belt.
Fresh air carries messages too.
And they, along with apparently tireless Communications and Community Affairs Director Bryant Daniels, immediately set a path for change at Roosevelt Island. The keynote of that change is improving relations with the community and its local media.
Just last week, with the dust hardly settled on Haynes’s removal, they reached out aggressively at a pair of community events.
The unofficial Operations Committee
Immediately following a RIOC Operations Committee meeting where board member Fay Christian appeared desperate to hang onto a phased-out status quo, an activist group of Roosevelt Islanders stayed behind.
Margie Smith, Paul Krikler, Rick O’Conor, Judy Berdy, Ben Fhala and Lydia Tang were joined by Cunneen, Ellis, Amin and Daniels. Nothing about it was official, but everything about it was amazing.
* The original version did not mention Cunneen as being in attendance. She was.
RIOC and community leaders had not sat down for an open, mutually beneficial conversation since, at least, June 2020.
While no official decisions were made, a great many bridges were crossed and connections bonded.
The Official Community Board 8 Roosevelt Island Committee
You can see it for yourself…
Given the contrast it invoked, the CB8 Roosevelt Island Committee meeting held via ZOOM on the day after the unofficial Ops meeting was startling. Roosevelt Islander Paul Krikler’s management of the session was perfect, the tone was fertile.
Not only were all three key RIOC leaders present – and probably exhausted on a second straight very long day – but their commitment to being an active part of the community energized the session.
The topics – new, dynamic signage for Cornell Tech, dealing with the February F Train Shuttle shutdowns and the many Tram issues – brought lively discussions that, for a change, were the seeds of promised action.
You had to be impressed by the variety and insight of the ideas shared and considered. Finally, smart, informed residents had their thoughts respected and considered.
Morning on Roosevelt Island – the evening editions – lifted higher. Like the sunrise, it won’t go back.
As the Dust Settles
The way the wind cuts across the river this time of year. The way older buildings hold heat but never quite hold air. I told myself that was why my chest felt tight again on certain mornings. Age, perhaps.
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Hope springs eternal!
It does. Patience…