Works in progress, by Mark Shames

None of the community or political things that I have been following have reached the next milestone. I will update you anyway. The alternative is to revert to a reverie of spring and hold forth on the rebirth it represents (my wife says that’s what writers do when they have nothing to say). Anyway that’s not me. Since the recent death of a dear cousin, I have been thinking more about endings than renewal.

Politics
On the political front local clubs are holding their fundraising events and some folks with ambitions are preparing the fields for a fertile future but there is no real action. The only races are two special elections on May 5. The first is in Staten Island and part of Brooklyn to replace Michael Grimm in Congress. That race pits Republican DA Dan Donovan of Eric Garner notoriety against Democratic Councilman Vincent Gentile. While the grand jury may still be out it is generally assumed that Donovan will ride a tsunami from the south shore to victory. As an admirer of scientific method I, as always, support the Democrat. Councilman Gentile has generally run a professional campaign but I am disappointed in his position in support of voter (suppression) ID laws.

In the 44th Assembly District race things have been entirely muddled by the failure of the local and county organizations to form a representative county committee. Inexplicably, but par for the course in Brooklyn politics, the gentleman who did have the few critical votes failed to timely file. There is no Democratic candidate. It seems anyone can win. District Leader Patterson running on the Independence line is the regular machine candidate. Diana Richardson has the Working Families line with the support of many unions and the Clarkes. Geoffrey Davis has been active in the community for many years. The Republican Candidate Menachem Raitport, although ordinarily a non-factor in the district, given the divided field could end up a one term Assemblyman with a large block vote. The biggest surprise so far is Scott Stringer’s endorsement of Richardson. That is the only clue to a result so far. The result in one truly special election probably won’t indicate a paradigm shift in any event.

Back to the Gowanus
Let us turn to the dream of a clean and safely swimmable Gowanus Canal. The important news coming out of the canal isn’t as you might think the swimmer’s aborted Earth Day swim. You surely wouldn’t know that from the comparative press coverage but you just can’t compete with a good visual.
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has announced its proposed plan for the remediation of the Fulton Manufactured Gas Plant site at Sackett and Degraw Streets from the canal to Nevins Street.

The first and for now the only thing proposed is essentially the same style of winged barrier wall that is being proposed for the Public Place site which is now occupied in large part by Ferrara Concrete. The wall will be sunk to a depth of 50 to 60 feet and will prevent coal tar from entering the canal. The main difference in the proposals is that the source toxins at Public Place will be removed once they get around to relocating the concrete company while at Fulton the source toxins may be left in place indefinitely. This sounds troubling to those who always sought a “comprehensive cleanup” and it may very well be a serious breach of that promise. However, development pressures make it likely that all but Thomas Greene Park will be remediated sooner rather than later. Cost concerns could result in the hotspot at the park being left in place.

Our concern may be short lived, if the City decides to place one of the stormwater retention tanks, that were mandated by the federal Environmental Protection Agency as part of its Superfund remedy, under the park site.

For those unfamiliar the tanks are intended to prevent sewer overflows from recontaminating the canal once it is dredged and capped.

The consensus in the community, including those who are friends of the park, is that remediation should be undertaken now and that alternate park and pool facilities be provided. The expense is significant but it is the logical next step along the path that was chosen.

The EPA Gowanus Community Advisory Group has asked for an extension of the DEC comment period from early May until after the location of the tanks are known while still calling for immediate and comprehensive cleanup.