The local paper for the Upper per East Side p OPERA FOR THE MASSES: JANE MARSH MOVES FROM DIVA TO TEACHER < CITY ARTS, P.13
THE $1 MILLION EFFORT TO DUMP THE DUMP
2014
NYPRESS.COM
Our Town East Side @ourtownnyc
MEASLES CASES REPORTED IN CITY Health alert: The NYC Health Department said it is investigating a measles outbreak in Manhattan. To date, there have been six confirmed cases involving three adults and three children. According to a report from a pediatrician in the city, two of the children were under one year and, therefore, too young to have been vaccinated; one was unvaccinated due to parental refusal. The three adults ranged in age from 34 years to 63 years. There have been no hospitalizations or fatalities. Those experiencing symptoms are urged to call their doctor right away.
BY DANIEL FITZSIMMONS
CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
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In Brief
UPPER EAST SIDE Pledge 2 Protect, the Upper East Side community group that’s emerged as the most potent force fighting the waste transfer station on the Upper East Side, has considerable pull in the community. The group has amassed 30,000 signatures denouncing the city’s plan, and a recent rally it organized at the cavernous Holy Trinity Church was packed with residents, standing room only. The rally was called to draw attention to a new report commissioned by the group that labels the project as harmful to children and detrimental to families who live in the area’s lowincome housing developments. At the rally, residents were urged to contribute money to Pledge 2 Protect, to help fund opposition to the project. While many individuals have contributed – at last count, more than 1,500 different donations have been made, the group says – the vast majority of the money isn’t coming from the people packing the rallies at places like Holy Trinity. A review of financial documents by Our Town shows a much more complex financial picture of P2P: While there is indeed a groundswell of popular opposition to the city’s plan, there is also deep – and deep-pocketed – backing of the group by real estate and other business interests in the area. Last year, Pledge 2 Protect spent nearly $1 million on its efforts, according to city filings. The result is a prototypically New York mashup of interests, from public housing residents and old-time Upper East Siders to developers with an interest in the area. “At present, P2P has over 30,000 individuals and 26 different organizations who are part of the coalition,” said Kelly Nimmo-Guenther, the group’s president. “We are fortunate to have received over 1,500 donations from a few dollars to thousands of dollars from private citizens and companies from all over the city.” According to Rubinstein Public Relations, the Manhattan powerhouse
WEEK OF MARCH
DOORMAN PAY TALKS UNDERWAY Trash has spread throughout the city as sanitation workers have had to spend more time cleaning up snow and less time picking up garbage. The city says street cleaning seems finally to have caught up. Photo by Mary Newman
COMING DOWN, PILING UP GARBAGE Sanitation officials acknowledge the city is dirtier, as workers are diverted from garbage to snow BY MARY NEWMAN
First the snow, now the trash. According to the Department of Sanitation, through the end of last week we have already seen 58 inches of snowfall so far this winter. That’s more than twice the amount of snow we’ve received last year -and it’s resulted in what residents say is roughly twice the amount of garbage in the street. Upper East Side residents, in particular, have not been pleased with Mayor Bill de Blasio’s ability to handle the snow and resulting trash. “I see more mess,” said East side resident Emma Lang. “I really feel he wants to get back at the people who live in Manhattan.”
As New Yorkers grow more impatient, some have looked to pass off the blame elsewhere. The Department of Sanitation commissioner, John J. Doherty, has been taking the fall for the mismanagement of snow and the buildup in garbage, despite his 30 years of experience. “I keep waiting for the picture to be in the paper with goat’s horns sticking out of my head, like I’m the goat of the storm,” he told the New York Times. “We got a black eye, I think my reputation, and the reputation of the department, has been seriously tarnished.” Constantine Mitides travels from Queens and said his commute to work has almost been impossible some days. “Instead of cleaning the streets, they just shove the snow off to the sides and then there isn’t even a place for the garbage to go. It just piles up,” he said. According to the Department of Sanitation, street cleaning has caught up and is back on schedule
as of last weekend. While many of the main avenues appear to be in good shape, if you walk down any side street you are welcomed by empty coffee cups, plastic bags, thrown-out brooms, and unclaimed recycling. “Due to the recent rash of snow storms with sub-freezing temperatures and blustery winds, trash and recycling collection was delayed throughout the city,” Kathy Dawkins of the Department of Sanitation told us. “Keep in mind that the sanitation workers who normally pick up trash and recycling are the same ones who drive salt spreaders and blow snow.” The upshot: one person can’t do two jobs at once, which means the answer for all of us is to wait for the thaw, and for the garbage to, finally, disappear. For more debate on the state of our dirty city, see Voices, on p. 8.
Unions: Contract talks have begun for the 30,000 doormen, supers and other workers represented by 32BJ SEIU. The negotiations, between the union and building owners represented by the Realty Advisory Board, come as apartment sales and rents in the city are at a record high -- a fact that will be used by the union in its negotiations. “These workers make New York home for more than two million tenants every day” said Hector Figueroa, president of 32BJ. “With rents and the cost of living rising every year, we want to make sure that these hard-working men and women can make New York their home as well.” In the four years since the last contract, the consumer price index in the New York City area has gone up by 10%. Costs for some everyday items have skyrocketed – milk is up 33%, meat jumped by 21% and MetroCards rose by 22% since 2010. Failure to reach an agreement by April 20th could lead to a strike directly affecting more than two million New Yorkers living in 3,300 apartment buildings across the city. The next bargaining session will take place March 13.