Interim Management, New Management – For PSD It Makes No Difference
For RIOC’s Public Safety Department (PSD) on Roosevelt Island, yesterday was just another day of perverse achievement. “Extra PSD officers will be stationed at both the Roosevelt Island and Manhattan Tram stations during these weekends, and if you are elderly or disabled and need help reaching the Manhattan side Tram platform, please make sure to speak with one of the PSD officers on site,” RIOCs February Newsletter promised. But then, Public Safety peed in the interim leadership’s shoes instead.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
Where are we anyway? Is Roosevelt Island a placid paradise where no cause for action ever arises? Is the East River really just a placid pond bordered by trees?
You can see the difference between the idyll Public Safety occupies and the one where Roosevelt Islanders live and commute.
What Went Wrong?
Yesterday, a longtime resident wondered, “With so much bus traffic on Main Street – from the Q102, MTA shuttle and our red buses, plus lots of taxis… Shuttles every 5-10 minutes. Not a Public Safety Officer in sight at the Chapel / 540 crosswalk. One at Helix/Farmer Market. Not anywhere At 7:00 – 8:00 am & 12:30 – 1:30 pm. Are they all on both sides of the Tram?”
Well, no, early yesterday afternoon, they were not in those places either.
It’s anyone’s guess where they were, but you can rule out doing their jobs.
Taking your breath away here is that, by posting these notices, RIOC makes it clear that they know what’s supposed to happen, but again, it doesn’t. Hasn’t for years. From controlling eBikes racing down Main Street with food deliveries to simply being visible, RIOC’s Public Safety Department repeatedly shows that it’s not up to the assignment.
Or is it that they don’t want to? Are PSD managers just pissing on the executives shoes, showing them who’s boss?
Someone should be embarrassed here… or frustrated and angry, but we’re not going to see any of that.
RIOC Budgets a Headcount of 50 PSD Positions. So, Where the Hell Are They?
“Extra PSD officers will be stationed at both the Roosevelt Island and Manhattan Tram stations during these weekends, and if you are elderly or disabled and need help reaching the Manhattan side Tram platform, please make sure to speak with one of the PSD officers on site,” RIOC said.
But it’s not just that they failed again because – what if you are disabled and went out for an appointment depending on that promised assistance?
Now, you’re at one of the busiest, most complex intersections in the city. Cars rush on and off the Queensboro Bridge, weaving through heavy 2nd Avenue traffic. And there you are, leaning on your walker, sitting in a wheel chair, leaning on a cane… and no PSD officer anywhere in sight.
Now, what?
Just consider, whatever your situation, the sheer magnitude of this negligence and indifference.
Missing Management
“The absence of any visible PSOs on both Main Street and at the Tram, on a high traffic day like today, and possibly continuing tomorrow and for two more weekends is very concerning” a reader writes.
“And it should be called out to our “new and open” leadership, including Howard Polivy as well as Kevin Brown, Anthony Amoroso the other high-titled PSD folks.”
For the record, RIOC’s Public Safety Department has at least three six-figure managers on staff. That should be enough that one could pick up the phone and tell a couple of their charges to get over the Tram plazas and do what their leadership promised.
You’d think.
Things That Make Your Eyes Roll…
Our Mentality
PIOC Public Safety Department
While the Public Safety Department’s scope of work is defined by laws that govern communities throughout the City and State, our services to Roosevelt Island residents often go beyond the activities of a typical Police Officer. The department’s philosophy resembles that of the old-fashioned cop on a beat. While upholding the law, each officer is encouraged to understand and appreciate the Roosevelt Island community and its individual residents.
What Happens Next?
In a world flavored with public accountability, those responsible would stand up, apologize and promise better, but that’s not how RIOC works.
Last week, when we reported another PSD disappearing act while Con Edison work clogged Main Street, creating traffic safety hazards, RIOC’s interim leadership pulled a basket over it’s collective head and claimed it never happened.
We expect the same again. It’s the classic RIOC way. And that won’t change until the governor does because Roosevelt Island is an irritating grain of sand in Albany’s view.
We’re mainly a patronage dump. The results show.
AVAC Is Working. The Model Is What’s Aging.
Roosevelt Island’s AVAC system is often discussed as if it were either a miracle or a menace. In truth, it is neither. It is functioning infrastructure that has reached a point in its lifecycle where how it is maintained matters as much as whether it exists at all.
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