By Jean Brannum | jbrannum@queensledger.com

Outside the DKN ReadyMix facility, Councilmember Lincoln Restler, State Senator Kristen Gonzalez, Assembly Member Emily Gallagher, and other community members spoke out against the cement mixing company for polluting the area and causing intense noise.

The facility, which has several Department of Buildings complaints for spraying dust into the air, and banging concrete blocks against the ground causing noise and shaking, has received repeated requests from elected officials and residents to be better neighbors, the officials say. However, the facility has allegedly failed to meet with the community and has not fixed the issues.

The situation has escalated to the point where Restler called for the company to shut down the Greenpoint location.

“They’ve provided no substantive information, no real answers, most of all, no improvement,” Restler said. “We are gathered as elected officials, the united front, as community leaders, community-based organizations, all together demanding that this noxious business get the hell out of Greenpoint.”

Jens Rasmussen, who lives next to DKN, told Greenpoint Star in a previous interview that he saw workers slamming cement blocks onto the ground, which caused shaking and cracks in his building. The dust in the air has also caused respiratory issues for his two-year-old son.

Another resident, Laura Hofmann, said she could write her name in the layer of dust that coats her car. She lives a few blocks from the facility.

The DOB fined DKN $620 for performing work with a certificate of occupancy for the sale of used cars and car parts. The dispute was resolved, according to the DOB, and the certificate was corrected.

However, elected officials and residents say they have not seen improvement in the air quality or noise levels. Elected officials sent a letter to DKN demanding a meeting. The meeting was supposed to take place Aug 14 but was canceled the day before, according to Restler. He said that DKN hired a lobbying firm” to assist them. There has not been a meeting, or discussion of one, since then.

The air quality index (AQI) readings have been startling at the exact location of DKN. Lael Goodman, director of environmental programs at North Brooklyn Neighbors, saw a spike with an AQI reading over 500, which she said was worse than readings during the wildfires in Canada that turned city skies orange in 2023.

Air quality monitors measure for particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter, which is small enough to be inhaled, Goodman explained in a previous interview. An acceptable air quality reading is an average of 35 micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m3) over 24 hours, according to NYC Environment and Health. Air quality readings on Purple Airshow the average 24-hour amount to be 59 µg/m3as of Sept 20. The one-week average is 55 µg/m3.

The issues with DKN reflect repeated environmental justice issues in the neighborhood. Gallagher spoke about how she is tired of companies causing environmental issues for nearby residents. She also encouraged DKN to start working with the community to protect residents’ health and well-being.

“They can either work with us and keep their business, or they can work against us and see what happens,” Gallagher said.

Willis Elkins from the Newtown Creek Alliance agreed that Greenpoint already has many environmental issues from an industrial history.

“It’s not that this is anti-business. This is being a bad neighbor, and DKN ReadyMix has this proven history of polluting our air, polluting our waterways, and congesting our streets, making it dangerous for everybody in the community, Elkins said.

Elkins referred to DKN’s previous establishments at Maspeth Ave and in Long Island City. Riverkeeper, a nonprofit that advocates for the protection of the Hudson River and its tributaries, sued DKN in 2016 for allowing stormwater runoff from their facility to pollute nearby waterways in Long Island City. A judge ruled in favor of Riverkeeper and DKN had to pay $10,000 to the Newtown Creek Alliance.

While Restler ultimately called for DKN to relocate, he and his elected counterparts clarified that they are not against all businesses or industrial establishments in the area. He simply wants these businesses to be good neighbors. Gonzalez said that DKN can choose to comply with regulations and be a better neighbor.

“We want a new industrial business providing good jobs to our community, who will be a good neighbor for Greenpoint, Restler said.”

DKN ReadyMix did not respond to requests for comment.

By Jean Brannum | jbrannum@queensledger.com

The G Train officially fully reopened the morning of Sept 3, after a series of partial shutdowns for repairs.

The MTA Interim President Demetrius Crichlow and MTA Construction Development President Jamie Torres-Springer greeted customers at the Metropolitan Ave station to celebrate the reopening. The nine-week project allowed the MTA to add Communications-Based Train Control to improve train service reliability.

“I was so happy this morning, I got into the ​​ train station, took the train here and had Pharrell’s “Happy” song in my head with an extra bounce in my step,” said Council Member Lincoln Restler.

Work will continue until 2027, but the critical work is complete. Many signals on the G train route date back to the 1930s. Assemblymember Emily Gallagher and State Senator Kristen Gonzalez, along with other elected officials, said that these changes have been necessary for a while.

“I think this will set a new standard for what the future of the MTA can look like, the future of transit can look like; something that is on time, reliable, fast, and of course, as you heard modern,” Gonzalez said.

In addition to adding Communications-Based Train Control, the MTA also replaced 9,495 tiles in G stations, painted 1,802 columns, and repainted 233,645 square feet of platform, track, and mezzanine ceiling.

Some weekend and overnight outages will occur as work continues from 9:45 pm to 5 am the week of Sept 16.

 

By Jean Brannum | jbrannum@queensledger.com

After a long battle between two opposing organizations, politicians, the mayor, and the Department of Transportation, McGuinness Blvd will finally receive some modifications intended to improve safety. 

But the modifications failed to address key issues according to advocates from Make McGuinness Safe. 

The DOT informed elected officials on Aug. 20 that it would move forward with a compromised plan to end the cycle of deadly accidents, injuries and near-misses on the street. 

A  letter from the DOT to Community Board 1 shared details of the modifications. One of the two travel lanes will become parking overnight from 7 PM to 7 AM. There will be protected bike lanes and loading zones, but Make McGuinness Safe supporters believe that the bike lanes will continue to be blocked by trucks unloading due to a lack of parking during the day.  

Longtime Greenpoint resident Kevin LaCherra explained that with two travel lanes and no parking until the evening, trucks may have no choice but to park and unload in the bike lane or block the travel lane. 

Currently, the road has two travel lanes and one parking lane. The DOT proposed three different solutions and Make McGuinness Safe supported Plan B, which is to replace a travel lane with a parking lane and make the current parking lane a bike lane. The DOT studied the idea in 2021 and found that the plan may cause more congestion, but would divert more cars to the BQE and the Long Island Expressway. The study also found that cut-through traffic comprised 30% of total traffic. 

However, the DOT approved Plan A, which was implemented in the northern part of McGuinness in the Summer of 2023. Make McGuinness Safe continued to advocate for one travel lane and one parking lane with loading zones and said that Plan A does not work to reduce collisions. 

“We’re getting a plan that we already know doesn’t work because it’s been installed along the northern portion of McGuinness Blvd,” A statement from Make McGuinness Safe said on Instagram. 

LaCherra said that the DOT’s solution essentially just added a bike lane that would be blocked by trucks unloading during the day. 

“We are not adequately addressing the problem on McGuinness Blvd, which is not a lack of bike lanes, it’s speeding traffic and congestion. It is traffic being moved off of the highways onto local streets and speeding”

Councilmember Lincoln Restler, Gallagher, and State Senators Julia Salazar and Kristen Gonzalez are longtime advocates of the proposed changes. They released a statement with other elected officials. 

“After repeatedly changing his mind and undermining DOT’s evidence-based redesign, Mayor Adams is going forward with a plan that fails Greenpoint by preserving the most dangerous elements of this roadway that runs through the middle of our community,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, a deleted tweet shows Keep McGuinness Moving retweeting the news about the redesign with a “peace” sign emoji and kissing face emoji. 

An Ongoing Battle

The road has been plagued with injuries and deaths since its construction, according to Make McGuinness Safe and previous reporting. New articles log deaths and injuries on the street as far back as 1995. Since 2011, over 2,000 accidents have been reported including three deaths, according to CrashMapper. 

In 2021, then-Mayor Bill DeBlasio pledged $40 million to redesign McGuinness after the death of PS110 teacher Matthew Jensen. His death sparked members of the community to form Make McGuinness Safe, which has garnered 10,000 signatures from residents to make the street safer. 

In response to calls to remove a travel lane, a coalition of local businesses banded together to oppose the redesign called Keep McGuinness Moving. Participating businesses are not listed on the website citing harassment claims from those supporting Plan B. 

In its statement against the redesign, Keep McGuinness Moving says that McGuinness is a coastal evacuation route and that removing a travel lane could cause congestion. The group has also said that cutting a travel lane would hurt local businesses. 

LaCherra said that Make McGuinness Safe surveyed 103 local businesses, most were within 1000 feet of McGuinness, who supported the redesign. One of the reasons the group advocated for Plan B was due to the added loading zones incorporated into the parking lane. 

The statement from Keep McGuinness Moving also urged the DOT to listen to all members of the community and recently published its own survey on X claiming that many local businesses were opposed to the redesign. The groups also released a statement on Aug. 27 opposing the elimination of permanent parking for bike lanes. 

“We urge the DOT to broaden their approach and move the bike lanes to the safer residential streets. reinstitute parking, and focus on redesigning intersections.”

In 2022, the DOT implemented some changes while discussing street design solutions. Changes included extending medians so people would have a place to wait to cross midway and banning lightly-used left turns. 

Make McGuinness Safe pushed for several changes to improve pedestrian safety. Mayor Eric Adams initially agreed to the changes verbally but walked back his agreement in 2023. He instead encouraged the Department of Transportation to work with both opponents and supporters of the plan, according to The CITY. The CITY reported that the campaign against the changes was backed by Broadway Stages owners Gina and Tony Argento. The Argentos have donated over $15,000 to Adam’s campaign. 

The DOT eventually replaced a parking lane with bike lanes north of Freeman Ave in the Spring of 2024, according to Make McGuinness Safe. This modification matched Plan A. Still, the organization wants the bike lanes to extend to Meeker Ave and, more importantly, wants the second travel lane gone. 

Despite a major setback for Make McGuinness Safe, LaCherra said that this is not the end of the fight for the redesign. 

“As far as we’re concerned, nothing has changed. We’re going to continue fighting. We’re going to continue pushing. We’re going to continue to make our presence known and say that this is unacceptable.”

Editor’s note: A previous version of this article incorrectly said that the map image showed where noise and traffic complaints come from. The caption has been corrected to say that the map shows where noise monitors and traffic guards are located. 

By Jean Brannum | jbrannum@queensledger.com

The park under the former Kosciuszko Bridge doubles as an event space in the once-empty area. Throughout the year, people stroll through the seven-acre land, ride through the skate park, and flock to the concerts under the BQE. 

However, according to the park’s neighbors, the space is also a source of noise pollution and traffic. Nearby residents complained to the North Brooklyn Parks Alliance staff of music blaring into their apartments until as late as 4 AM, and car horns waking them after the concerts conclude. Residents with young children say that the noise often wakes them up.

Greenpointer Lucy, who declined to give her last name, said that she hears music as late as 4 AM. She has sent multiple emails about the noise but said she has received few replies. Other members of the community affirmed that they had heard noise at the same time.

Katie Denny Horowitz, executive director of North Brooklyn Parks Alliance said that some official events go as late as 2 AM, but most events conclude around 10 PM. Noise later than that comes from park visitors who hang around afterward. 

“Why can’t they end at a decent time? By 10:30 or 11 o’clock?” Greenpointer Michele Chesnicka said. Many residents at a public meeting voiced their agreement that events should conclude earlier. 

If the noise from the park is disturbing, residents can call a hotline to request noise testing. Horowitz said that the response time is usually immediate and encourages residents to call them as soon as the noise becomes a disturbance. 

The Parks Alliance’s policy is to keep noise in the park below 100 decibels, which is as loud as a train, according to a city noise code guide. For areas outside the park, Horowitz and her team try to keep noise at less than 50 decibels, or less loud than a normal conversation.

Horowitz mentioned that since the park started hosting concerts, they only just started receiving noise and traffic complaints. Councilmember Lincoln Restler said that he has received a few emails about the noise from the park, but takes those complaints seriously. 

Noise Beyond Control

 

But the issue of late-night noise is—many times—beyond the park staff’s control, Horowitz said.

During a tour, we heard music from the other side of the skate park. On the street adjacent to the end of the park, a white car sat with all the doors open blasting music. The noise was so loud we had to end our tour before reaching Newtown Creek. 

Horowitz said she normally calls the police for noise, but often the car partiers either come back to the site or move to another area to become someone else’s problem. The partiers are also on the street and technically off of park property. 

Another source of noise is post-event traffic. Greenpointer Matt Maclean walks through the park with his three-year-old son daily but said the post-event car honking often wakes up his three-year-old son.

“The honking on Apollo St is bad enough during the day, but when it’s 2 AM wakes me up and wakes him up. That’s totally out of the ordinary,” said Maclean. 

Eric Kun, another neighbor, said it would be better if the Parks Alliance worked with the community. Horowitz responded that the meeting was set up to work with residents, but Kun wants a follow-up meeting to keep the community involved in improvements. Horowitz also noted that the space started hosting larger events this past season. 

“If people come together like this, we have the opportunity to have face-to-face time with you, this a little bit more empowering and it feels like there’s a connection, Kun said. 

Balancing Act

 

While some suggested a complete shutdown of events, staff of North Brooklyn Parks Alliance, the nonprofit that designed the park, and Restler pointed out that the money from the concerts is reinvested in parks across Community District One. The nonprofit hires gardeners to maintain the grounds and provides much-needed maintenance to playgrounds and plazas. 

The North Brooklyn Parks Alliance, which is registered as a nonprofit as Open Space Alliance for North Brooklyn, made $457,000 in 2022 from “Program Services”. This is significantly more than the $33,000 made the previous year before the nonprofit expanded programming in the Under the K Bridge Park. Program Services were about 34% of the total revenue. Contributions were 34% of income. 

About $290,000 from the Parks Alliance goes towards staff salaries. The Parks Alliance spent $85,000 on park improvements in 2022. 

Greenpointer Heidi Vanderlee said that if the city provides parks with more funding, then there would not be a need for concerts at Under The K and that District One residents are lucky to have another revenue stream for parks. 

Greenpointer Kevin La Cherra said the Parks Alliance contributed supplies to clean up McGolrick Park in 2020 when mudslides occurred and funding was cut. 

“We see what these parks look like day to day and how much worse they are when they’re not invested in,” La Cherra said.

Under the K Bridge will host six events scheduled from Sept 1 to Oct 12. 

By Jean Brannum | jbrannum@queensledger.com

A micro-distribution center may come to Greenpoint as part of a pilot program for the city.

The center, known as a microhub, is a small distribution center for e-commerce companies such as Amazon. The program follows Local Law 166, which went into effect in Dec 2021 and mandates the city seek feedback on a possible microhub network, request interest from relevant businesses, and, in 2023, establish a pilot program to support these centers. .

The City Department of Transportation will open some areas for businesses to use as microhubs. One of the potential locations is under the BQE between Kingsland Ave and Sutton St. in Greenpoint, which is currently a low-demand parking lot. The pilot program allows this in a few areas before the DOT expands the program to other parts of the city.

According to a presentation about the program, similar microhub networks exist in Paris, Washington DC, and Seattle. The hubs are a solution to increased truck traffic and pollution due to the recent increase in e-commerce users since 2020. Freight Planner Katherine Ponte from the DOT estimates that four trucks per company would make trips to the microhub daily, which means 8-16 trucks total.

As the owner of a microhub, a company would have to limit truck usage within the city. Companies would have the option to use cargo bikes, hand carts, or electric vehicles.

At a meeting on July 31, community members met on Zoom to give public comments to the DOT, and ask questions. Many residents are supportive of the idea but want strict regulations to minimize traffic in the immediate area and noise.

Ponte touted the program as a way to prevent injuries for e-commerce delivery people, who frequently have to sort packages on sidewalks or even on the street. Microhubs give workers room to sort packages within those neighborhoods, which would minimize the number of delivery trucks that block traffic lanes.

Bronwyn Breitner, a street safety advocate who lives near the potential site, is thrilled about the potential microhubs program but wants to ensure that the areas do not bring more congestion to the area, which already has a lot of traffic. Breitner is also worried about cyclist and pedestrian safety since she is waiting for bike lane improvements in the area.

Kevin La Cherra, another Greenpoint resident,  wanted to know how the microhub would affect truck traffic in the immediate area.

Ponte noted the residents’ concerns and said that the DOT will soon conduct a cargo bike survey. The DOT authorized the use of E-cargo bikes in March 2024. Ponte said that the DOT can use the survey and feedback from the pilot program to find areas of improvement for bike-friendly infrastructure.

La Cherra also commented that current laws meant to decrease pollution are already not being enforced, such as idling laws, and that members of the community have been advocating for street safety improvements for years with no action from the DOT. La Cherra pointed to the proposed improvements to slow traffic at McGuinness Blvd, which the mayor famously rejected in 2023, and similar proposed changes to Kingsland Ave.

Councilmember Lincoln Restler decided to speak after Breitner and La Cherra’s comments, saying that while their frustration is valid, it is important to look at the “big picture”

“I don’t think that we should confuse what is a promising and exciting pilot project that I’m happy is happening in our neighborhood with some of the other initiatives that have not moved forward,” Restler said.

Restler clarified that he wants the program to be implemented in a way that benefits the community and appreciates the public input.

The DOT issued a Request for Expressions of Interest from businesses that wish to take part in the program. Ponte said that one of the conditions for businesses to set up a microhub will be that they adhere to policies that keep the area clean and minimize noise.

The DOT is currently working to finalize what businesses will take part in the pilot program, but cannot reveal names yet.

 

By Jean Brannum | jbrannum@queensledger.com

Politicians and tenant’s rights groups met with residents of Greenpoint for a town hall about the new “Good Cause” Evictions law, which went into effect in April 2024. 

Assemblymember Emily Gallagher and State Senator Julia Salazar, who introduced the Good Cause law, hosted the event. Dominique Hood from the Metropolitan Council on Housing and Lino Diaz from Communities Resist gave presentations on what residents need to know about the Good Cause laws.  Councilmember Lincoln Restler was also in attendance. Housing experts joined attendants in the El Puente Community Center to answer additional questions.  

The Good Cause laws protect tenants in market-rate homes from unreasonable rent hikes and unjust evictions. It also allows tenants to challenge rent increases in court. 

Are You Eligible?

It’s important to note that only certain homes are eligible for Good Cause protections. Only market-rate homes are protected, meaning they are not classified as Section Eight, NYCHA, Rent Controlled or Rent Stabilized units. Homes must also be built before 2009 and rent must be less than 245% of the market rate per month. Co-op homes and condos are not eligible for Good Cause protections. 

Landlords have to notify tenants if their homes are covered under Good Cause for leases, renewals, rent hikes and evictions starting after Aug. 18. Your landlord must state why or why not you are protected under Good Cause. 

Lastly, a Good Cause only applies to landlords who own more than 10 units. You can find out how many apartments your landlord owns by searching on whoownswhat.justfix.org

Can my rent increase if it is under Good Cause protections?

Landlords can reasonably raise rent if the apartment is under Good Cause protections. However, the increase cannot be more than 5-10% of the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Landlords have to provide advanced notice to tenants. Notices must be 30 days in advance for residents who have stayed in a unit for less than a year, 60 days for one or two-year stays, and 90 days for residents staying two or more years in a unit. 

To increase the rent beyond 10%, landlords have to prove that a rent hike is necessary for the upkeep of the property. 

Can I get evicted from my apartment?

In New York City, a landlord has to evict a tenant through a court proceeding.  In a Good Cause unit, landlords have to have a good reason to evict you. The reasons include rent nonpayment, violating a substantial obligation of your lease, being a nuisance, or failure to provide the landlord adequate access to your unit, according to the Legal Aid Society.  

How can I exercise my rights as a tenant in a Good Cause unit?

There are two different types of cases where the defense could be based on the Good Cause law: nonpayment and holdover cases. In a nonpayment case, the landlord’s goal is for the tenant to pay the missing rent. The case is closed once that rent is paid, according to Diaz. In a holdover case, the goal for the landlord is to get the tenant out of the unit whether rent is paid or not. If a landlord takes a tenant to court then the tenant can provide a defense or “answer.”

If you believe your rent was raised unjustly, you can use Good Cause as a defense for nonpayment in a rent trial. One example of a defense is the Warranty of Habitability, which means the landlord knew of certain conditions in the unit and did not fix them. Therefore, rent should be reduced. 

For a nonpayment case, answers must be filed within 10 business days of receiving the petition. The form is available at the court clerk’s office. After filing, a court date is set. In a holdover, you must serve an answer before your first court date. The housing court may provide a form, or you can find it online.

Most importantly, tenants do have the right to have an attorney to represent them. NYC tenants are entitled to an adjournment at their first court appearance to find counsel. Tenants can also use the Right to Counsel program at their courthouse, which is access to free representation through nonprofit organizations. 

Who can I contact if I have questions?

Many organizations advocate for tenants and provide legal services for free, such as the Legal Aid Society, Communities Resist, the Metropolitan Council on Housing, and Brooklyn Legal Services. Communities Resist has an intake hotline at (646)974-8761.