Manhattan Beach Community Group

MANHATTAN BEACH COMMUNITY GROUP, INC.

          “The Civic Association Advancing Community Interests”- Founded 1941

250 Dover Street - Brooklyn, New York 11235

(718) 200-1845

www.ManhattanBeachBrooklyn.org

E-mail:  info@manhattanbeachbrooklyn.org

Minutes of the Board of Directors’ Meeting

Wednesday, September 23, 2009 – PS 195 – 8 PM

Approval of Minutes: The meeting was called to order at 8:11 PM by 1^st Vice-President Bunny Fleischer. The minutes of the August 23, 2009 meeting were approved with the following correction: Two separate letters, not one, were written to protest the findings of the C.I./Gravesend Sustainable Transportation Report.  One was written by Theresa Scavo (CB15) to the DOT Commissioner and the other was written by Judy Baron (Traffic) on behalf of the MBCG to the Brooklyn DOT Commissioner.   A warm welcome was extended to: Theresa Scavo, Chairperson, CB15, her husband Anthony, Ilya Novofastovsky from Assemblyman Cymbrowitz’ office, Gail Alwais from Congressman Weiner’s office, Charles Glover from the Mayor’s office, and two neighborhood Rabbis, Rabbi Winner from Chabad and Rabbi Kupchik (the new Rabbi) from Temple Beth El. 

Gail Alwais: (Congressman Weiner)

• A Happy and Healthy New Year to all.
• The Congressman needs to hear from the community regarding issues of concern.  Contact Gail or Todd at the office at 718-520-9001.

Charles Glover: (Mayor Bloomberg’s Office)

• Mr. Glover will be available throughout the meeting to hear any concerns.
• The Mayor has dedicated an individual to answer questions regarding the Belt Parkway reconstruction project.  You can go on the website and request that email alerts be sent to you to inform you about upcoming closures.

Police Report:  61^st Precinct Community Liaison Officer Ahiesha Grant and Sgt. M. Doyle

• There was one attempted burglary and one stolen vehicle in the neighborhood during the last month.
• There will continue to be additional police coverage for the Jewish holidays. 
• The next meeting of the 61^st Precinct Council will be on Oct. 14 at 7:30 at the Bainbridge Center, 3093 Ocean Avenue.
• There have been many complaints about speeding, parking, and traffic since the resumption of classes at KCC.  As was done last year, radar will set up by the highway patrol on Oriental Blvd, and traffic agents will enforce parking rules.  The Summons Unit has also been active, and issued 70 summonses last month.  The police are also coordinating with the Director of Security at KCC.
• The rules prohibiting bicycle riding on the footbridge will be enforced.

President’s Report:  Ira Zalcman

• A happy and a very healthy New Year to all.  Thank you all for coming, and thank you and welcome to the two Rabbis in attendance.
• Parking and speeding remain major problems on Oriental and Shore Boulevards.  We have been in regulars contact with Sergeant Doyle to try to get something done about this.

• The next meeting of the MBCG will be on Wed., Oct. 28, 2009 at PS 195 at 8:00 pm. This meeting will be dedicated to parking and traffic.  There continued to be a mess on Oriental Blvd near the beach entrance, and no barricades were put up as promised this summer. Also, the No Stopping Signs in front of the Beach were consistently ignored all summer. Thus it was impossible to ride on that portion of the bike lane. 
• The topic of our meeting on Nov. 18, 2009 will be education, with Principals and representatives of our primary and secondary schools in attendance. 
• Our 69^th membership meeting will be held on Dec. 2, 2009.  We will decide on a speaker and on the venue.
• Flori Kostoff will be the new chairperson of the Parks Committee.
• We are working on a party for our 70^th membership meeting next year.
• The situation at the MTA bus turnaround has improved.  John CiSena has been absolutely wonderful.
• The DOT continues to put forth “Option 3”, which is ridiculous.  Judy Baron will talk more about this in her report. 
• There is a slowdown on the B train due to construction.  Affected community groups need to get together to put on pressure to speed things up so the work will be completed faster.
• Making the community green has been a cause close to Ira’s heart.  His initiatives have included planting trees (through the efforts of Manny and the Parks Committee), and advocating for solar energy for the community (based on Louise Albenda’s idea for the bathhouse).  He felt that it is his responsibility as President to alert the community of any stuation that may be harmful to our children or to our environment. An issue of possible concern is the current KCC project to install Astroturf (Artificial Grass) on their ball field.  Funding has been provided through Councilman Nelson’s office and the project, undertaken by the Parks Dept, is underway.  The MBCG was not consulted about this process nor were we provided with information about the materials used in the Artificial surface and its under layer which may be problematic.  Some types of Artificial Grass have heavy metals and lead that can leach into the local water.  Photosynthesis cannot occur, as it does with natural grass and there is no CO2 reduction.  Astroturf is not bio-degradable and will just sit in the landfill.  The field can get very hot and emit heat and chemicals.  Its rubberized surface under the artificial grass can contain Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH’s) under the top layer.  According to the EPA, PAH’s are probably carcinogenic and can  cause risk to infants and children, including DNA damage, impaired fetal growth, and reduced cognitive damage.  The average size playing field can be emitting gases from over 26,000 minced tires. There is also the question of damage to our environment from the drainage into the ocean of chemicals.These are possible dangers, and it is the worst-case scenario, but this is a serious endeavor and the Community should have been informed about the details of the project.
• Discussion ensued regarding the Astroturf surface, with questions raised about the materials used and the development of the project.  Dr. Saul “Billy” Katz and Theresa Scavo (CB15) offered the following information:

o       Dr. Katz:  The Buildings and Grounds person at Prospect Park, where 8 of these fields were built by the Parks Dept., spoke with KCC, and assured the college that there is no lead and no dangerous chemicals involved and that the fields have held up very well.   Astroturf is a brand name for Infield Base System Gameday Grass X PE-52.  The MBCG was informed about this about 4-5 years ago.  The monies for this (Over $1 million) have finally come through based on the efforts of Councilmen Nelson, Recchia, and Fidler.  KCC has planted 200 trees under the Mayor’s initiative, and plans to have natural grass bordering sides of the field.  The grass will be fertilized in a green way.   Water will drain off through pipes into storm sewers and out to the ocean, and there will be no chemicals and no lead used.   The college has vetoed putting in a track or lights. 

o       Therese Scavo (CB15):  The CDC identified no dangerous chemicals in Astroturf.  It contains no lead and there is no danger from particles. 

• Although there may be no lead in the Astroturf, important questions about the PAH’s and the composition of the rubber layer under the turf remain.  Ira will compile a list of questions for KCC.

Committee Reports

Gerald Sachs:  Nominating Committee

• The slate of nominees for Officers and Board of Directors of the MBCG for 2010 was read.  The slate will be mailed to all members along with the minutes of the September, 2009 meeting.

CB 15:  Theresa Scavo, Chairperson

• There has been no response to the letters that were written rejecting all the proposals of the C.I./Gravesend Sustainable Development Transportation Report. The DOT officials have said that they know better than us when it comes to safety.  Letters have also been sent to the Commissioner of the DOT, Janette Sadik-Khan.
• Jules Spiegel, Parks Commissioner, is now “re-evaluating” the situation with the planters, and will contact the DOT.  An attempt to move one failed when it wasn’t first emptied.
• There will be reconstruction on the Belt Pkwy from C.I. Avenue to Knapp Street, including work on guard rails, curbs, etc.  This will begin June, 2010, and will run anywhere from 6 months to 2 years.  It will involve the closing of 2 lanes between 1-5 am.  There are questions as to where to store the equipment so as not to disturb residents in the area.
• The B/Q construction was held up since 2004.  It will involve new stations, new track, and new elevators.  Express service must be intermittently suspended. CB15 has written multiple letters to Howard Roberts, TA President, with no response.  The project will take 2-2 1/2 years.

Traffic:  Judy Baron

• The Q and B trains are both running local. 
• The members of the traffic committee are:  Judy Baron (Chair), Susan Klapper, Flori Kostoff, Stanley Kaplan, Kathleen Higgins, Sheila Pass, Elayne Kramer, Marty Edelman, Sue Yellin, and Marilyn Chernin.
• The committee wrote a letter complaining about the proposals of the C.I./Gravesend Transportation Report, stating that the proposals are a disaster and that the hazards that will occur as a result are clear.  Any accidents resulting from these proposed changes should be the city’s responsibility.  The committee will turn to the Mayor to ask him to do something.
• Identified problems that the committee will work on are speeding and increased college traffic. We need increased police enforcement and more ticketing. The committee welcomes any innovative ideas about solutions to these problems.
• The B1 bus service often doesn’t run in the afternoons or else is full and doesn’t stop.  The committee will try to address this problem as well.

MBCG 70^th Year Book:  (Stanley Kaplan)

• Drawings in Stan’s possession of MB from the years 1971-1981 will be donated to the Brooklyn College Archive.
• Stan displayed a large picture of MB in the 1940’s showing two beach clubs in the areas of the college and Menorah, and also small bungalows in the area of the park.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:42 PM

Next meeting of the Manhattan Beach Community Group Board of Directors

Wednesday, October 28, 2009 at 8:00 pm at PS 195