"The city should do what the law requires, which is a full environmental impact statement," says the plaintiffs lawyer.
Bronx
Previously, we wrote about the city's plan to redo the Bronx's Pelham Parkway, including adding guardrails that would require killing at least 80 of the century-old trees lining the road. Last week, the trees -- represented by the Pelham Parkway Preservation Alliance and attorney William J. Madonna -- won a restraining order in Bronx County Supreme Court against the city, according to the Village Voice.
The Pelham Parkway Preservation Alliance has been vocal in its insistence that the trees can safely co-exist with changes to the Parkway. "We're not against safety improvements or road improvements," David Varenne, co-founder of the Alliance, told the Voice, "but we want it done with the foremost care. [The trees are] a defining character of the Bronx. They add to the property value and desirability to the neighborhood."
Adds Madonna, "The trees are not doing a tap dance into the middle of the street. They aren't reaching down and grabbing cars."
The Alliance took their case to court, requesting that the city stop all construction, remove all construction vehicles, and not cut down any trees. They asked the city to have a third party perform and release environmental impact statements about the project. They also requested the city appoint a lead agency to administer the entire project, since there's been some apparent confusion on which agency, exactly, is ultimately responsible.
Read More:
Pelham Parkway Trees Win a Restraining Order Against the City
Village Voice - Oct. 18 2010 - By Valerie Vande Panne
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/archives/2010/10/pelham_parkway.php
DOT To Kill 87 Pelham Parkway Trees - Official Insults Regis Philbin
A Walk In The Park - August 14, 2010 - By Geoffrey Croft
http://awalkintheparknyc.blogspot.com/2010/08/dot-to-kill-87-pelham-bay-parkway-trees.html
Showing posts with label Pelham Parkway Preservation Alliance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pelham Parkway Preservation Alliance. Show all posts
Monday, October 18, 2010
Saturday, August 14, 2010
DOT To Kill 87 Pelham Parkway Trees - Official Insults Regis Philbin
Bronx
By Geoffrey Croft
The Department of Transportation's (DOT) controversial plan to destroy 87 trees along the Pelham Parkway in the Bronx spilled onto the national stage this week when TV host Regis Philbin tackled the issue on his morning show, Live with Regis and Kelly. Mr. Philbin spoke passionately about the trees and about growing up near the Parkway when he was a child.
"Leave those trees alone!" Regis Philbin exclaimed. "Why in the world would they have to remove 87 beautiful mature, lovely trees that have been there for years, and all of my life. And it's going to cost the city—us—$36 million?"
When contacted by The Daily News about the controversy, an assistant commissioner for the Department of Design and Construction made a joke and then attempted to portray Mr. Philbin as being uniformed about the issue (a tactic not uncommon under this administration when one dares to disagree).
"At first I thought he was being out-Regis," joked Matthew Monahan, assistant commissioner for the Department of Design and Construction (DDC). "But it later appeared he was not fully briefed on the plan. Public safety is the city's absolute top priority here."
In fact Mr. Philbin did mention the agency's reason for the destruction of the trees on air—he just didn't agree with it—a fact Mr. Monahan apparently ignored when speaking to the reporter in attempting to justify DOT's plan.
The TV host read a letter published in the New York Post written by former Parks Commissioner Henry Stern, which, to no one's surprise, did not criticize the Parks Department for giving DOT permission to destroy the trees. The DOT argues the destruction of the trees is necessary in order to install guardrails, siting a number of accidents along the parkway. No alternative has been made available by the Bloomberg administration.
"There is a plan to put a guardrail on the side of the road, to protect drivers who fall asleep, drive drunk, or don’t know where the road is," Mr. Stern wrote. "The guardrail would also protect the trees, which are scuffed and gashed by the clumsy or irresponsible drivers.
It is not a physical necessity to remove the trees in order to install the guardrail. It is a convenience for the contractor.
When we called DOT to inquire about the removal of the trees, we were told that DDC was in charge of the project," Mr. Stern wrote in a follow up letter on August 12, 2010. "When we called DDC, we were told that the trees were on park land. When we called Parks, we were told that the reconstruction had been initiated by DOT. This round robin of avoiding accountability would be comedic if it didn't involve the destruction of trees that are older than most people.
It also appears that no environmental assessment was ever performed on this project. According to the City Environmental Quality Review (CEQR) procedure, the lead agency of any city project should perform such an analysis when it would lead to "the removal or destruction of large quantities of vegetation or fauna" or "the impairment of the character or quality of important historical, archeological, architectural or aesthetic resources (including the demolition or alteration of a structure which is eligible for inclusion in an official inventory of such resources)."
The newly formed Pelham Parkway Preservation Alliance, founded by Dr. George Zulch, Joseph Menta, and David Varenne, has been leading the campaign to preserve the trees. Plan opponents have collected more than 1,000 petition signatures from local residents.
The newly formed Pelham Parkway Preservation Alliance can be contacted by email: treestosave@yahoo.com and on Facebook.
The historic Pelham Parkway, known for its stately elm trees, was built in the late 19th century and created by the Grandfather of Bronx parkland, John Mullaly (1835-1915) . (The City recently repaid him for his exemplary civil service when they allowed the destruction of a large part of his namesake park to the build the new Yankee Stadium.) At 2.3 miles long, the parkway connects two the famous parks—Bronx Park and Pelham Bay Park.
According to the Parks Department, the parkway consists of three traffic lanes going in each direction, two large center plots, one small plot, two marginal streets, a bridle path, and an aqueduct shaft.
"An opulent thoroughfare linking two of Parks’ brightest jewels, the Bronx and Pelham Parkway, is a graceful testament to the beauty Mulally and the New Parks Act brought to the Bronx, " the agecny says on its website.
Read More:
New York Post - August 8, 2010 - By Henry Stern
cut down by city for guardrail space
New York Daily News - August 13, 2010 - By Mike Jaccarino
Queens Crap - August 13, 2010
Face Deracination Under City Plan
NY Cvic - August 6, 2010 - By Henry Stern
New York Daily News - November 10, 2009 - By Mike Jaccarino
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