Local Crime, State Budget and Parks Discussed at CBR Meet

By Tamara Best

At the Citizens for a Better Ridgewood meeting Tuesday, the state budget, voting, crime in the 104th Precinct and issues at local parks were among key discussions.

State Senator Addabbo (D-Howard Beach) addressed the audience briefly to discuss the state budget, trains hauling garbage through the area and the upcoming election.

“I want to go back to Albany to finish off what we should have before July 4,” he said, adding that he continues to express frustration over this year’s process and hopes to restore money to areas where it has been lost due to budget cuts.

“As the budget gets cut, the District Attorney loses money for prosecutions,” he said in reference to repeat offenders and curbing crime.

Members of the audience also raised concerns about the MTA, the lack of the M train running on the weekend and the possibility of fares being raised. Addabbo said he is hopeful that an independent audit being done of their practices will be complete by the year’s end.

“I’m not convinced that they’re good at math or lose money,” he said, adding that the M line is “critical” to the area and hopes that the MTA will be able to “restore service to the levels we deserve.”

Addabbo also reassured residents that though efforts at trying to pass legislation on a hard covering for the railcars transporting waste was unsuccessful, he plans on pushing for stronger laws again during the next legislative session.

With elections this fall, he also took a minute to remind residents of the new electronic voting machines and urged them to have patience.

“This new year starts a new era in voting,” he said. “Be prepared for longer lines and to spend a little more time voting this year. We don’t want people to go home, if you can stand a little frustration it is worth your time.” When asked why he voted against gay marriage, he said that the majority of correspondence from constituents asked that he not vote in favor of it.

“I see 300,000 people jammed into my seat in the chamber,” he said of the way he votes on issues, adding that “accessibility and conversation is important to the progress we need to make.”

Community Affairs Officer Tommy Bell of the 104th Precinct provided an update on crime for the year. Crime is up so far, with 990 incidents so far this year as opposed to 928 at the same time last year. Felony assaults have spiked from 96 last year to 128 for the year to date. With auto theft plaguing the community, Bell said the precinct is remaining proactive and vigilant, employing the latest technology to help them combat this type of crime in the area.

Bell also encouraged residents to try and deter burglars from breaking into their home by securing air conditioning units, having a crime prevention officer visit the home to offer a free assessment and by closing their windows, even if they are only leaving their home briefly. Residents who need help removing graffiti can contact GCop, the 104’s Civilian Observation Patrol, at (718) 497-1500.

With recently renovated Grover Cleveland Park now open once again for area residents to enjoy, Steve Fiedler, chairman of Community Board 5’s Parks Committee, said there have been no major problems thus far. However, the lack of goalposts for the soccer fields, exits near gardens and double parking are issues that need to be addressed to improve the park’s condition.

Fiedler also spoke briefly about the state of the Ridgewood Reservoir, noting that the state Department of Environment Conservation is considering designating the area a wetland. The department’s decision would complicate the city’s current plan, prohibiting the beginning of phase one until a decision is made.

“We don’t want the Parks Department to build phase one the way they have it designed,” he said, adding that the planned removal of 160 trees is “unacceptable.”

Fiedler told the audience that several local high schools and colleges have expressed interest in using the potential wetland for educational purposes, furthering the need for it to be preserved. Fiedler said three contractors have entered their name to be considered for the project.

Straphangers Campaign Ranks M Train City's Dirtiest

By Tamara Best

The results are in for the 11th annual Subway Shmutz Survey, and for commuters in Middle Village, Ridgewood and Glendale, the news isn’t so good. The most widely used subway in the area, the M line, has been named the dirtiest line of all 22 citywide.

The survey, conducted by the watchdog group the Straphangers Campaign, measures the cleanliness of city subway lines based on 2,200 observations between September and November 2009.

The 6 line, which operates in Manhattan and the Bronx, and the C line, running from Manhattan to Brooklyn, were named the best with a rating of 65 percent for cleanliness.

Lines were rated based on MTA official standards. They were named “clean” if subway cars contained ‘light’ dirt or were ‘basically dirt free’-- generally clean overall.

“Moderately” dirty lines had dingy floors and/or one or two sticky dry spots, while “heavily” dirty cars contained spilled food, sticky wet spots and left some seating unusable. The survey did not take litter into consideration.

Commuters waiting for the M train at local stations had mixed reviews for the state of the line on Tuesday morning.

“It tends to be dirtier headed into Manhattan but to me on the Queens side it is pretty clean,” said Michael Phillips, who was waiting for a Queens-bound train.

Another traveler, Michael Ortiz, said he disagrees with the rating. “I don’t believe it’s the dirtiest train line. I’ve ridden it my whole life and there are lines that are much worse like the D train. There’s usually graffiti but that’s about it,” he said.

Diana Kinscherf, who was waiting for a Manhattan-bound train and rides the M line twice a week, described it as “pretty dirty,” with coffee cups and newspapers all over.

There is some good news about the M line. Straphangers reports that 90 percent of M line trains arrive with more regularity, higher than the average of 87 percent. The line also breaks down less with commuters more likely to get a seat.

At the end of the month, the M and V lines will merge, retaining the M line designation.
The new route will run between Forest Hills and Metropolitan Avenue, with service to midtown Manhattan instead of downtown.

Of the 22 subway lines in New York City, more than half run through Queens. In addition to the M line, the E, F, and V service Rego Park and Forest Hills, the L goes through Ridgewood and the E, F, R and V operate in Forest Hills. No lines run through Maspeth. The F and V lines were also cited for having significant deterioration from last year. Overall, fifty percent of cars were dubbed clean, down from 57 percent in fall 2008, while half grew worse according to the survey.

Gene Russianoff, campaign attorney for the Straphangers Campaign said a reduction in
the budget has decreased the MTA’s cleaning staff, resulting in more dirt in the subway.

"It’s as clear as the grime on a subway car floor: an MTA Transit cut in cleaners has meant dirtier cars,” he said. “And more cuts mean more dirt for subway riders.”

In 2009, there were 1,138 cleaners and 146 supervisors, a decline from 1,181 cleaners and 155 cleaners in 2008. The 2010 budget calls for a further decrease with 1,030 cleaners and 123 supervisors.

“We saw a pretty distinct decline between 2008 and 2009,” said Cate Contino with Straphangers. “We will do the survey again next year and see what happens.”

The MTA also conducted their own semi-annual survey, citing that the overall cleanliness of cars improved over the second half of 2009, according to a report published in February 2010.

However, the MTA and Straphangers differed on its assessment of the percentage of clean cars and overall improvement. MTA cited that an average 95 percent of cars are clean, in comparison to 50 percent cited by the Straphangers Campaign.

MTA surveys are conducted only on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. while the Straphangers’ surveys are random throughout the day and night and on weekends.

The MTA released the following statement in response to the survey’s findings:
With the current budget challenges being faced by MTA New York City Transit, we acknowledge that some subway car floors may not be as clean as our customers expect or deserve. However, we will monitor conditions and shift forces as necessary. We also take the opportunity to remind customers to pitch in and help keep the subway as clean as possible by utilizing proper refuse receptacles.

Despite a harsh review for the M line by the Straphangers Campaign, experienced commuters say it’s all a matter of perspective and subway experience. “All of the lines are dirty,” acknowledged seasoned rider Samantha Villafane. “It’s New York City— you have to get used to the dirt.”

Push for Upgrades Along Rail Corridors Gains Steam

By Conor Greene

An effort to increase the quality of life for residents living along rail corridors is gaining momentum, as civic associations from throughout the area are banding together to address the issue.

Neighbors Mary Parisen and Mary Arnold recently devised a plan entitled Glendale Clean and Green, which aims to address issues relating to the railroad yards and corridors that cut through the area. After presenting their plan to Community Board 5, the women found that other nearby communities are suffering the same types of problems.

To address these issues, which range from emissions coming from idling locomotives, along to noise and safety concerns, a group called Civics United for Railroad Solutions (CURES) was recently formed. It includes various civic groups such as Citizens for a Better Ridgewood, Glendale Property Owners Association, Communities of Maspeth and Elmhurst Together, the Juniper Park Civic Association, Maspeth West End Block Association and Citizens for a Better Ridgewood.

After getting word of the effort out to the public, residents from Glendale and surrounding neighborhoods such as Middle Village began contacting the women to get involved, Parisen reported at last week’s Community Board 5 meeting. “They’re facing the same problems we’re facing in Glendale,” she said, noting that a petition effort is underway to pressure elected officials to taking action.

Arnold said that while there are a host of problems related to rail operations, the main focus continues to be on lowering the harmful emissions that spew from the locomotives. “That’s what all of us are breathing when you have diesel engines idling outside your house,” she said, adding that federal grant money is currently available to pay for the conversion of diesel engines. “It’s hard times, but we’re all breathing this air and it’s a problem,” she said.

Middle Village resident Laura Zimmer, who also lives along the rail corridor, said the problem has gotten much worse in recent years. Locomotives now idle in her residential area for as much as two hours at a time, preventing residents from enjoying backyards or hanging laundry outside. “It’s really disturbing... We’re all suf- fering from this,” she said.

Board District Manager Gary Giordano later credited Parisen and Arnold for doing a “yeoman’s job to bring all this to the attention of the elected officials” and said support on the federal level “will be very important.” He is hopeful officials “can come up with an avenue for fund- ing very quickly” to help alleviate the problems.

With state federal funding in mind, CURES recently sent a letter to officials regarding the MTA’s 2010-2014 capital budget and the state Department of Transportation’s 2010-2015 capital budget. The letter asks the agencies “to effect planning, infrastructure, and equipment upgrades in Queens that will better protect the public health and safety and quality of life in communities that presently are bearing serious environmental burdens.”

The letter argues that the “contract between the LIRR’s gleaming double decker passenger rail cars that pass through our neighborhoods and the degraded condition of the LIRR rail corridor, the rail yards, and the freight transportation in our neighborhoods make it crystal clear that our neighborhoods have been neglected and dumped on for too long.” To remedy this, the group wants “state and federal oversight and money coming in here now to upgrade the freight transportation system and environment in Queens.”

The issues CURES seeks to remedy include “unnecessarily high levels of diesel emissions due to old equipment, idling, lack of traffic capacity and lack of ‘last mile’ access,” exposure of residential areas to waste that is being stored in and transported in open cars instead of sealed intermodal containers, open access for vandals to the LIRR rail corridor in an area that includes hazardous chemicals and the Buckeye Pipeline, and storage and transportation of petroleum gas and other hazardous chemicals, which has led to two emergency evacuations of homes in the past three years.

Regarding the problem described by Zimmer, Giordano said he has had a “much more difficult relationship” with New York and Atlantic Railroad than most of the other agencies he deals with. Trains had been parked outside Christ the King High School until the school sued in federal court. Giordano recently contacted the agency to see about having idling trains moved from the residential area near 69th Place, to no avail. “All I wanted them to do was move the switching operation maybe 200 yards south,” he said.

As long as these issues continue to detract from the health and safety of local residents, Parisen vowed that CURES would push for solutions. “You are going to be hearing a lot more about this organization,” she promised.

Officer Recovering After Ridgewood Shooting

Accidentally Shot During Investigation

By Conor Greene

The police officer who was accidentally shot while frisking a suspect during a domestic dispute investigation in Ridgewood is at home and recovering.

Officer Rodney Lewis of the 104th Precinct was released from New York Hospital on Tuesday and is expected to recover from a gunshot wound sustained early Sunday morning when a suspect’s gun discharged while officers were frisking him.

“He’s doing so well they discharged him today,” the precinct’s commanding officer, Deputy Inspector Keith Green, told residents at Tuesday night’s Citizens for a Better Ridgewood meeting. “That’s great news – luck normally doesn’t go that way for police officers,” especially when shot at close range.

The incident occurred at about 4:50 a.m. when Officer Lewis and his partner, Officer Mark Bublin were canvassing the area after receiving a report of a domestic dispute at 18-18 Menahan Street. The officers were looking for a Hispanic man who was involved in the incident and saw an individual matching that description walking down the block.

The officers ordered the man, identified as 33-year-old ex-convict Edwin Santana, to stop and placed him against a wall to pat him down, according to Deputy Inspector Green. As he was searching Santana, Officer Bublin felt a gun on the left side of Santana’s waistband. As the officer was removing the gun, Santana quickly turned around and faced him, causing Officer Bublin to drop the weapon. After hitting the ground, the gun discharged a single round which struck Officer Lewis on the left side of his chest. The bullet struck Officer Lewis just above his bullet proof vest and lodged under his skin but did not penetrate his chest.

Officer Bublin immediately turned Santana around and handcuffed him as Officer Lewis said he had been shot. Officers placed the injured cop in a squad car and rushed him to Wyckoff Heights Medical Center. He was later transported to New York Hospital before he was released on Tuesday. Officer Lewis, 40, is a four-and-a-half year NYPD veteran and former city Corrections Officer who lives in Freeport, Long Island with his wife and three children.

Santana, who has no known address, was arraigned Monday on charges of assaulting a police officer and criminal possession of a weapon and faces up to 15 years if convicted. He was not charged with attempted murder because he did not shoot the officer on purpose, according to authorities. He was ordered held on $100,000 bail and is due back in court on August 18.

The problem began when a local transsexual who calls herself Hazel Campana got into an argument with her boyfriend Carlos Berrios. Campana, who was born a man, called Santana, who is her ex-boyfriend, and asked him to come to the house to help her. Officers then arrived on the scene to find Santana walking down the block away from the house. Berrios fled before officers arrived and wasn’t involved with the shooting but is wanted in connection with the initial domestic incident.

Deputy Inspector Green said he got the dreaded phone call less than an hour after Officer Lewis was shot. He said the incident was especially dangerous because of the weapon involved - a 32-caliber long revolver that authorities say is about 70 years old. “Miraculously, he’s okay – he was hit in a vital part of the body,” he said.


Shortly after the incident, NYPD Commissioner Raymond Kelly and Mayor Michael Bloomberg arrived at Wyckoff Hospital to check on the wounded officer. The mayor used the shooting to highlight the progress the city has made over the past seven years fighting domestic violence.

“Six or seven years ago, there were many so-called experts who felt that crime could not get any lower in New York City. Somedoubted we could even hold the line against crime. Few thought it could fall further – especially in some of the more stubborn elements facing our society like domestic violence,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “But instead of listening to naysayers, Commissioner Kelly… attacked the challenge of fighting domestic violence crimes that so often happen behind closed apartment doors.”

Domestic violence related murders have fallen by 32 percent over the past six years, and all domestic violence crime is down 25 percent in that time, according to the mayor.

“But one thing hasn’t changed – and that’s the men and women on patrol for the NYPD fighting the plague of domestic violence in our city,” added Mayor Bloomberg. “Our gains would be impossible without them. And thankfully today Officer Lewis did not fall in the line of that battle.”

Mayor Bloomberg also touched on the city’s battle against illegal handguns. “Illegal guns kill cops – plain and simple. There is no conceivable scenario in which he could have legally possessed a firearm, let alone concealed it on his person,” he said. “The best news that I have this morning is that the prognosis for Officer Lewis is that he will fully recover from his wounds and I think he’s just another example of a man or woman who puts their lives on the line every day to protect the rest of us.”

Problems at Cleveland Park, Prostitution and Burglaries Continue

By Conor Greene

Problems at Cleveland Park that are preventing residents from enjoying the green space were the focus of this month’s Citizens for a Better Ridgewood (CBR) meeting. Other issues included a burglary pattern and the ongoing battle against prostitution along Starr Street, which the community has been dealing with for decades.

Crime Stats and Burglary Pattern

Through the first 30 weeks of the year, major crime is down 7.5 percent throughout the precinct, according to Deputy Inspector Keith Green. All of the seven major categories are down with the exception of burglaries, which are up in part due to several patterns in the Ridgewood area, including one open one. Otherwise, murder, rape, robbery, felony assaults, grand larceny and auto theft have all declined compared to the same time last year. In addition, arrests are up 20 percent for all crimes and 16 percent for major crimes.

The precinct was able to put a dent in the burglary numbers with the arrest of two individuals in May police say were responsible for a rash of residential break-ins in the area of Otto and Central avenues. However, there currently is an “open pattern” of burglaries in the southern section of Ridgewood, with at least seven apartments broken into recently. Deputy Inspector Green said the incidents occurred during the day, with the perp gaining entry through windows and some front doors.

“Burglaries tend to go that way, up and down with clusters,” he said. “We’ve made some good arrests recently, but we’re still working on that.” He urged residents to make sure windows are locked and noted that the suspects look for an easy target. “They find the easiest point of entry, so we try to stress [to residents] to make it harder. Even though it’s summer, you need to make your house secure.”

The suspects mostly took money, jewelry and small electronics during the break-ins, which included homes along Forest Avenue and near Fresh Pond Road.

Update on Trouble Bars

The ongoing problems at bars throughout the precinct, including loud noise and unruly patrons, were also discussed. Steps have been taken to address community concerns at Hush Café on Grand Avenue and at Moonlight Bar and Grill on Flushing Avenue after the 104th Precinct and elected officials received complaints about both establishments.

Deputy Inspector Green said the precinct constantly monitors the local nightlife scene for problem locations so they can take care of issues before they escalate. “Places we see that are going in the wrong direction… we bring them in and have meetings with the owners,” he said, adding that summonses were issue to the owners of both Hush and Moonlight. “As long as we have complaints we’ll be there, and they know it,” he added.

Cleveland Park Issues

A main source of frustration for many of the residents at the meeting is problems at Grover Cleveland Park, particularly with food vendors. Residents reported that the sidewalks around the park become unusable when the vendors set up shop, double-parked cares are causing unsafe crossing conditions and that illegal gambling is taking place inside the park.

Residents also described “unhealthy conditions” regarding the food preparation, with large open barrels of boiling oil creating a potential hazard. To add insult to injury, the park is left strewn with trash after events are held there, even though cleaning up is part of the requirements for obtaining event permits from the city. A resident said the situation has led to rodents and insects in nearby homes.

“If a police officer comes on one weekend, they will fill their quota for tickets,” said one resident. Added another: “We as residents on weekends don’t feel like we have any rights to go across the street to the park. This is not the first time we’re raising this issue.”

Deputy Inspector Green said officers will look into the complaints regarding the vendors and will conduct traffic enforcement in the area.

“We don’t have to tolerate anything that wouldn’t happen on Mayor Bloomberg’s block,” said Michael Hetzer, vice president of the CBR. “There are at least six, seven, eight different things going on that have to be dealt with by different agencies.”

Prostitution Woes Continue

Civic President Ann Maggio reported that prostitution in the area is once again “in full effect,” especially in the area of Starr Street. “This has been going on for twenty years. I know it’s the oldest profession and we’re not going to get rid of it, but not on Starr Street… If we were in Middle Village, it would be gone.”

Deputy Inspector Green said that prostitution is one of the tougher crimes to make arrests for but that officers are working on the situation. “You can drive by ten times during the night and not see them… It takes a bit of work to make an arrest.”

Hetzer again suggested that the problem is continuing despite years of complaints because of where it is taking place. “We just feel it’s not talked about that much because it’s in our corner” of the precinct.

The civic organization doesn’t meet again until September 28th at 7:30 p.m. in the basement of St. Aloysius Church, 382 Onderdonk Avenue.