Message from Menchaca, by Carlos Menchaca, City Councilman, 38th District

I would like to invite you to our presentation on Sunday, April 12 at 2 pm at Sunset Park High School and discuss the work that we did together this past year and look at how we can move forward.

Over the last year–in District 38–we have done things a little differently. Together, we have worked up the nerve to re-imagine the rules, the conviction to be honest about our needs, and the commitment to engage in the difficult conversations. We have taken the questions and concerns of local residents, and offered them a city-wide platform that has allowed us to produce landmark legislation, and change the lives of many New Yorkers, forever.

IDNYC–the largest municipal identification program in the country–launched this year to much excitement. I had the privilege of helping shape the legislation, and to continue to provide the kind of oversight that ensures the program’s continued success. The demands on the program have been large, and while there continue to exist opportunities for improvement, IDNYC has unlocked possibilities for every cardholder. As the program moves into its later phases, I encourage every person to sign up for an appointment, engage with the card and take advantage of everything it offers. My office will continue to be a resource for those who require assistance in connecting to IDNYC.

The legislative and policy victories of the last year have informed the local work we have done here in Red Hook and Sunset Park. We have sent a clear message to City agencies: we want to be a part. In Red Hook, at Valentino Pier, residents made history in the level of engagement they demanded. Immense opposition grew, ending the completion of a project that would, in essence, allocate over $2 million to the building of a comfort station. The community rejected the idea of this amenity, and mapped out their opposition in a number of meetings with my office and with the Parks Department. In the end, we were able to help facilitate what began as a toxic conversation into a plan that empowers the Red Hook community to have direct oversight over how the capital dollars will be spent. My office is working to finalize the community process right now.

Finally, in the face of tremendous pressure, we stood up against the New York Economic Development Corporation (EDC) when they proposed development that failed to address the concerns of local residents, and that did not offer enough opportunities for meaningful community engagement. When we made that important and transformative decision, we were attacked. We did not fire back. Instead, we got to work and invited EDC to talk directly to the community. Our conversations with EDC about the future of development on the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal are progressing, and have allowed us the space to address many concerns of District 38 residents. Central to our discussions has been expressing a shared and steadfast commitment to the industrial waterfront in both Red Hook and Sunset Park.

The key to long term commitment from our city, I believe, requires a relationship of trust that is established through the creation of new spaces and inviting new faces to the table, developing new leadership – especially our youngest members – and offering capacity building projects for our communities to be meaningfully engaged.

My campaign for City Council started because I was on the ground after Sandy, a tragedy that affected all of us. What I felt then is what I feel today – that our community’s health and prosperity relies on three basic tenants: protecting what is irreplaceable, restoring and improving those things that need attention, and making sure that all of us are heard when decisions are made regarding the future of our home. I look forward to continuing this conversation with you on April 12, at my State of The District address. “