The bulldozer fueling up to construct a Lighthouse Park-destroying, earthen berm around Coler Hospital may not be so powerful. Efforts are underway to sap its power.
by David Stone
The Roosevelt Island Daily News
On Monday evening, in the form of a Zoom session, a bulldozer edged further onshore on Roosevelt Island’s north end. A team from Health & Hospitals presented a massive project aimed at protecting Coler from flooding for at least 500 years as virtually a fait accompli.
In a session rowdier than host Laura Atlas acknowledged, residents showered the team with dozens of questions and complaints. Atlas confidently steered things positively, deflecting or ignoring the most difficult issues.
Of which there were many…
- “Why wall off Coler from our community?” (Anonymous)
- “It has been reported that the source of the basement flood during Hurricane Sandy was the abandoned HHC Steam Tunnel along the eastern seawall, which is now at risk for catastrophic collapse. Why not use the FEMA funds to repair or fill in the steam tunnel which is HHC’s responsibility in the first place?” (Steve Silverstein)
- “What happens to all the existing trees at Lighthouse Park?” (Melissa Godwin)
- “How many of the 815 beds at Coler are actually being utilized? What is the future anticipated utilization of Coler?” (Anonymous)
- “How long do you expect this project to take once the construction begins? Will this shut off the north end of the island and Lighthouse Park during that time?” (Amanda Matthews)
- “At the meeting that was held at Coler last week, we were told that other options are being considered. What other options are being considered?” (Verna Fitzpatrick)
The above represent questions and comments from just the first 25 minutes of the Zoom session. There were many more.
RIOC’s Position on the Bulldozer
A troubling aspect of the so-called visioning session was the absence of RIOC because the Coler Berm must gobble up some of its land. In context, the state agency’s interim leadership previously included the berm as part of negotiations over extending the state’s lease for governing Roosevelt Island.
Nonetheless, Atlas implied that RIOC was onboard with the Coler Berm Project, but to get a sense of where the state agency stands, The Daily asked Deputy General Counsel Gerrald Ellis:
“At the alleged “visioning” session last evening, Laura Atlas implied that they already have at least tacit approval for the berm project from RIOC. I’m trying to confirm that and to understand why that wasn’t made clear previously and why residents were not involved.”
Ellis was clear that “For the record, this requires board approval and the board hasn’t authorized anything. A contract was first discussed the better part of a decade ago, and that’s the same contract I’ve been discussing with H&H.”
That is, nothing is set in stone, and RIOC can still play a pivotal role in determining the future of this project.
But does the broken sewer thing undermine that claim…?
Unaddressed, though, is what looks like an attempt to obscure concessions made so far.
On May 23rd, RIOC released this advisory: “Please be advised that the Comfort Station at Lighthouse Park will be out of service due to a water break. RIOC is working with DEP to ensure access is available as soon as possible.”
Seems routine, right? And it was until Atlas inadvertently revealed that the water break was caused by Health & Hospitals boring holes in preparation for starting up the Berm Bulldozer.
Why was that fact never mentioned? They mentioned DEP but not Health & Hospitals, the team that caused the break.
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Letting Some Air Out of the Bulldozer’s Tires
“Let’s relax and let a working group” try working something out, one involved individual suggested.
“Hopefully some of us have a good relationship with H&H. That will help smooth the way, and I have a real passion for the residents there.”
Concerns for and by Coler residents over the berm project have been “widespread.”
“Many are already upset and need to be reassured that nothing will happen soon.”
Some believe that Health & Hospitals is open for discussion about modifying the plan.
Finally…
On two fronts now, options exist for changing or shutting down the Coler Berm Project. It’s wildly unpopular everywhere except in the government offices that are too often impervious to constituents.
We will stick with this story and update on any new information when we can dig it out from behind the bureaucratic barriers. It’s too big to let it become small.
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