Public Advocate's Corner

"Bronx Swamp" is No More

The City finally has cleaned up a fetid, flooded stretch of abandoned railroad known as "The Bronx Swamp," formerly an unsightly breeding ground for mosquitoes and other insects. Workers removed 45 tons of trash from the site and pumped out 650,000 gallons of water, leaving a dry walkway. Earlier, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum had visited the malodorous "swamp" and had spoken out about the unspeakable conditions there. She called for an immediate cleanup, noting that the waterlogged railbed constituted a serious health hazard as well as an eyesore. Residents say they had complained about the site for more than 10 years.

A news account of the cleanup is at: http://ny1.com/1-all-boroughs-news-content/top_stories/110520/-i-ny1-exclusive---i--city-soaks-up-bronx-swamp.

Calling Bronx Residents!

Last week, the City Department of Health (DOHMH) announced that it had detected West Nile Virus in mosquitoes collected from Ferry Point Park in the Bronx. In its announcement, DOHMH recommended reducing exposure to mosquitoes through certain measures, such as: 'Eliminate any standing water from your property as they are breeding sites for mosquitoes...Standing water is a violation of the New York City Health Code."

In response, Public Advocate Gotbaum renewed her call for the city to clean up a stretch of filthy standing water in the Mott Haven area of the Bronx--called the 'Bronx Swamp' by local residents. The swamp, which Gotbaum visited in April, was part of a rail line operated by a private company until 2004. Now, there is no clear ownership over the tracks, and the city has yet to take responsibility for maintaining them.

As Gotbaum noted, the city has allowed this substantial area of water to accumulate and fester under its watch: "To issue this warning to individual property owners while tolerating an enormous case of standing water on abandoned grounds is the height of hypocrisy. The city's failure to make the connection between the swamp and its own health advisory is an insult to all residents of Mott Haven."

To residents of Mott Haven and surrounding neighborhoods, the Public Advocate's Office wants to know:

Do you think the city should take responsibility for cleaning up the Bronx Swamp?

We look forward to hearing from you!

(Check out today's Daily News piece: Fearing W. Nile virus outbreak, Gotbaum tells city to clean abandoned swamp)

A Swampy Mess

Today, Public Advocate Gotbaum, along with community members, ACORN, and residents of the South Bronx, called on the city to take immediate action to cleanup a stretch of abandoned railroad tracks inundated with trash and standing water (left).

Residential buildings overlook the tracks-turned-swamp, and community members fear potential health risks stemming from the filth, standing water, and overwhelming presence of rats and mosquitoes. The stretch of swamp is on Jackson Ave between E 143rd (also known as St. Mary's St) and 144th street, across from St. Mary's Park.

In the past 10 years, 28 Bronx residents have tested positive for a neuro-invasive disease due to West Nile Virus. As summer and mosquito season approach, Public Advocate Gotbaum is calling on the city to properly drain the area and do everything possible to protect nearby residents from potentially dangerous conditions.

Should the city clean up this swamp? Post your comment below.

Gotbaum Calls for Immediate Action on Bronx Swamp

Between the Bruckner Expressway and St. Mary's Park in the South Bronx, a stretch of abandoned railroad tracks has evolved into a swamp, filled with trash, vermin, and muddy water. According to a recent Daily News piece, the tracks were part of a mail line operated by a private company until 2004. Now, there is no clear ownership over the tracks, and the city has yet to take responsibility for maintaining them. 

With summer approaching and temperatures expected to rise, surrounding communities may become more affected by the swamp's smell and potential health risks. On a visit to the tracks, a representative from the Public Advocate's office spotted running rats, floating cats, and swarms of mosquitoes rising above the filthy muck.

Today, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum called on the city to take immediate action. Gotbaum said, "In New York City, no one should have to live near something as filthy, and potentially dangerous, as this swamp. It is unacceptable that the city has yet to take responsibility for these tracks, and it is long past time to stop pretending someone else is going to fix it. I call on the city to immediately drain and clean the swamp, and address any lingering health risks resulting from it."

PA Gotbaum: End Costly, Temporary Homeless Shelter Program

Today, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum and homeless advocates called on the city to end the cluster-site program, which provides homeless families temporary shelter in approximately 1500 apartments. The program is similar to the scatter-site program, which was phased out by the Department of Homeless Services after it came under heavy criticism from Gotbaum and homeless advocates.

Gotbaum said, "This program appears to do more harm than good. It provides limited assistance to homeless families and leaves rent-paying tenants worse off."

Gotbaum and the advocates recommend replacing the cluster-site program with federally funded housing by restoring homeless families’ priority status for Section 8 vouchers and public housing. 

Problems with the cluster-site program include:

• The program gives landlords a perverse incentive to push out rent-paying tenants because the city pays landlords more for these apartments—an average of $1730 a month—compared to what residents living in rent-stabilized units pay.

• The program uses a limited stock of affordable apartments to provide the homeless with temporary shelter instead of using those apartments for permanent housing

• The city uses apartments in dilapidated buildings with dangerous conditions, such as peeling lead paint, cascading water leaking from the ceiling, and broken or defective fire retardant ceiling 

Read full Press Release

Below are pictures from apartments in a Bronx building used in the cluster-site program:
      

Safer Schools: Betsy on Mott Haven Ruling

Recently, the Bronx Supreme Court ruled that the SCA - an agency entrusted with managing the construction of New York public schools - had violated the State Environmental Quality Review Act by approving the contaminated Mott Haven Schools Complex as a site for a new school complex “without first detailing a plan to ensure that on-site protections would be adequately maintained and monitored.”

Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum said:

“I'd like to congratulate NYLPI for all their work on this issue. Last spring, my office released a report that pointed out a loophole in the Public Authorities Law that allows the SCA to open schools on potentially toxic sites around the city without full public environmental review.

NYLPI and the community's involvement in plans for the Mott Haven school is what led to the extra safety measures taken at this site. Had this site fallen in the PAL loophole, it's possible that the school would have been completed before the community and its representatives had a chance to assess the cleanup and long-term maintenance plans.

We need a process that includes opportunities for public feedback and Council oversight so that the parents can be ensured that no new or existing school locations pose a potential health threat for their children. It is my hope that NYLPI, community groups and the state legislature can work together to close the loophole in the state law as well as ensuring that sites like Mott Haven undergo comprehensive environmental review and have long-term site management plans to keep all our schoolchildren safe.”

Betsy Gotbaum has worked with community groups and local elected officials to cleanup the Soundview and Loral sites in the Bronx. Last year, she stood with Concerned Residents Organization of Soundview, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, and local politicians to call for the cleanup of the contaminated Soundview site. In 2005 she fought for the cleanup of the former Loral Electronics site and called on the city to remove illegally parked, waste-filled diesel trucks from a lot next to an 800-student high school in the Soundview neighborhood.