Community outreach an issue in Court Street controversy, by Asar John

When Community Board 6’s October meeting opened up to public comment regarding a redesign of Court Street, participants echoed their concerns about the board’s transparency, with some residents saying they were not properly made aware of the changes that came to pass.

At the end of the meeting, community members were allowed the customary three minutes to speak. Most chose to speak about the changes, which include a protected bike lane, curb extensions, daylighting and most drastically, a change from the longstanding two car lanes to one.
“The community board needs to do a better job in informing the people in the community,” said Carroll Gardens resident, Louis Pepe. “This was not told to us that Court Street was going this way.”
Pepe added that he was able to finally have a conversation with CB 6 District Manager Mike Racioppo about his concerns but had to call the office several times before anybody picked up the phone.

Must do better
“I do agree with what a lot of community members are saying and I think that sometimes we’re not receptive or open to dialogue and we don’t do enough outreach,” said community board member Reema Sharma, drawing applause from some attendees. “We feel like we’re not really connecting with people.”

John Leyva, a community activist from Cobble Hill, echoed those concerns.
“She’s absolutely right — the community is always the last to know,” said Leyva. “We only know when it’s time for a vote, and we don’t even know what’s going on.”

CB6 Chair Eric McClure made his closing remarks for the night saying, “self-reflection is always good,” and that CB6 isn’t perfect.

“We don’t pretend to be, but we can always continue to improve,” he said.

The board chair told Red Hook Star-Revue that assistance from the media and an increased online presence for the board would help.

When asked by the Star-Revue about community members’ complaints regarding difficulty reaching the district office, Mike Racioppo was defensive, contending that he does respond to email and “got thanked by three people” at the board meeting regarding his communication.

“We could always do better — social policy and public policy is always a moving target,” said Racioppo.

Meanwhile, on Court Street, business owners and employees say they weren’t aware the redesign was happening and that it’s impacting them negatively.

“My local deliveries are having a problem getting parking to begin with,” said Chris Addis, the co-owner of Fish Tales Gourmet Seafood Market in Cobble Hill, adding that delivery times have tripled since the street change.

Addis said he’s seen a handful of accidents and near misses along with bikes competing with vehicle users in the driving lane.

“They should stay in the lane that was made especially just for them but some people just don’t care, they just do whatever they want to do,” said Addis.

Businesses said deliveries have also been a hassle for other businesses along the busy commercial strip, despite the installation of new loading zones as part of the reconfiguration.

“If the delivery drivers can’t find a spot two or three blocks away and bring everything on pallet jacks, they’ll just leave and not deliver our stuff,” said Ed Saleh, an employee of Beastly Bite, a pet supplies shop on Court Street.

Saleh said he signed a petition calling for the street to change back to its two-lane configuration.

On Oct. 24, a group of business owners under the Court Street Merchants Association filed suit against the city, calling to halt the implementation of the redesign. McClure, who is also the executive director of StreetsPAC responded in Streetsblog: “We’ve seen these types of suits get filed and then not succeed, and this shouldn’t be any different. “They have a legal right to seek redress through the courts, but I don’t anticipate that will be successful.”

Others had differing opinions on the new design, saying there was always a need for it.

“I wish this was here while I was working on Court because cars definitely don’t obey the speed limit here,” said Bobby S., a Clinton Hill resident and cyclist. “The school buses are going to have to adjust, the people who drive it every day are going to have to adjust.”

Another cyclist, Alex G., said the frustration with traffic goes both ways depending on the mode of transportation being used.

“When you’re driving you’re going to be annoyed at the bikes and when you’re biking you’re going

to be annoyed at the cars,” said Alex. “Just be careful and that’s it.”

At the community board meeting, Mazzone ACE Hardware store owner, Matt Mazzone, said that while he welcomes a bike lane on Court Street, the city transportation department’s outreach to businesses about it didn’t seem sufficient.

“They’re claiming that they surveyed over 200 businesses, and I’ve personally spoken to about 40 businesses along Court Street — none of them have been surveyed,” said Mazzone. “And none of them know anybody that’s been surveyed.

DOT claims that they conduct extensive outreach to communities whenever local safety improvements and projects occur. They are required by city law to notify local officials and the community boards when planning changes.

During the Oct. 8 board meeting, McClure said that DOT presented the Court Street redesign at a transportation committee meeting in June, where it received unanimous support.

Despite that meeting, it is clear that many in the neighborhood were not aware of its implications.

DOT did not respond to an email regarding community input about the redesign and bike lane at the time of publication. Council Member Shahana Hanif’s office told us that she strongly supported Court Street safety improvements.

“Improving this streetscape for all users is an urgent priority,” said Hanif, highlighting Court Street’s designation as a Vision Zero Priority Corridor.

While she threw support toward the reconfiguration, Hanif added that she’s open to working with her constituents and DOT to address concerns. However our questions about what her outreach to the community was before the project began remain unanswered.