Fwd: JAN 16: UPDATED ACTION POINTS & EMAIL LIST FOR 3R SUPPORTERS

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Jan 15, 2010, 11:45:26 PM1/15/10
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From: "Cheryl Ip D'Hollander" <ip1...@mac.com>
Date: January 15, 2010 11:44:08 PM EST
Cc: "Cheryl Ip D'Hollander" <ip1...@mac.com>
Subject: JAN 16: UPDATED ACTION POINTS & EMAIL LIST FOR 3R SUPPORTERS


Dear Supporters of Option 3R:

In response to the overwhelming support for Option 3R, the Community Board 1 (CB1) Youth & Education Committee decided to clear the agenda to discuss the 2 zoning proposals at their meeting on Tuesday Jan 19th.  Supporters of both proposals will have an opportunity to speak up, and then the Committee will deliberate in an open fashion similar to what the CEC did on Jan 13.


The only way Option 3R can win the CEC re-vote on Jan 27 is if the CB1 Y&E Committee endorses Option #3R on Tue Jan 19. They previously endorsed #2 before DOE #3 or #3R came out.

We must gather MORE SIGNATURES and CB1 MUST RECEIVE MANY MORE EMAILS from #3R supporters BEFORE TUESDAY if we want to see Option 3R passed:


1) PETITIONS
The LMC3R sent a very strong message by submitting close to 1000 SIGNED PETITIONS representing all 4 communities in Lower Manhattan to the CEC on Wed Jan 13. However since the vote is still undecided (Option 3R with 4 votes vs. Option 2 with 5 votes; 1 vacant seat and 1 absent member, 6 votes to win), we must collect more signatures to stress what the MAJORITY of Lower Manhattan wants. CB1 and all local elected officials are taking the number of signatures VERY SERIOUSLY. 

 

If you or someone you know can help collect signatures in their building (whether it's FiDi, Seaport, Tribeca, or Battery Park City) please email me directly at ip1...@mac.com

 

Every signature counts, and the more address representation the better, so please help even if you live in a small building!

 

 

2) EMAILS TO CB1& OTHER ELECTED OFFICIALS
By the last CB1 count and through our conversations with elected officials, #3R was still behind #2 supporters in email & phone call volume because SW Tribeca Coalition (for Option 2) started lobbying much earlier than 3R supporters. Therefore, it is crucial for 3R supporters to FILL CB1'S INBOXES before Tuesday Jan 19.

Please send emails to CB1, CEC, DOE, Councilwoman Margaret Chin, Borough President Scott Stringer, Senator Daniel Squadron, Assemblymembers Sheldon Silver and Deborah Glick (Silver represents FiDi/South BPC while Glick represents Tribeca but please email both offices regardless of where you live; include your home address on all emails).

 

We need to convey the message that this is a Lower Manhattan issue, not a TriBeCa issue. We need to change the tone of the conversation from one of a fight between E and SW Tribeca to one for the greater good of Lower Manhattan. We want a zoning plan that is more equitable and more enduring to preserve community & quality of life for all of Lower Manhattan, more robust and more effective in reducing overcrowding at our schools. We want safety for all children, and we need to make all crossings safer, but not to re-zone around them.

The main and only argument from SW Tribeca Coalition is that it is too dangerous for their children to cross West Street to attend ps 89 just a block away. This is the same West Street that FiDi children must cross after a long walk from their neighborhood in order to attend ps 276 under Option 2. It is now time for CB1 and CEC to hear the views of FiDi and South BPC families. 

 

All elected officials are COUNTING OUR EMAILS to gauge the size of the supporters. As you may know, the last CB1 count as of Tuesday morning showed only 62 emails from #3R supporters vs. 110 from #2 supporters (2 weeks leading up to Jan 12). The count was unfair given #3R wasn't released until Jan 7, and many #3R supporters did not realize the CEC was leaning on Option 2 due to the lobbying effort by SW Tribeca Coalition. If you have never sent an email to some or all of these officials then your email counts even more. Please include your address to ensure representation.

 

*A sample email is included below.

*The 5 CEC members who voted Option 2 on Jan 13 were: T. Elzora Cleveland, Mary Silver, Sarah Chu, Eric Greenleaf, Shino Tanikawa

 

UPDATED EMAIL LIST

 

 

 

 

 

 



Sheldon Silver – NYS Assemblymember for FiDi/Seaport, South BPC

Silver's office: 212 312 1420
Paul Goldstein (education contact): 212 312 1423


Deborah Glick – NYS Assemblymember for Tribeca, North BPC, some City Hall, down to Barclay Street

 

Glick's office: 212 674 5153
Molly Bidol (office contact)

 




SAMPLE EMAIL TO CB1 and ELECTED OFFICIALS:

 
1) This concerns all of Lower Manhattan not just Tribeca
 
I would like to dispel the notion propagated by the media that the school zoning issue revolves around East Tribeca versus SW Tribeca.  This is untrue, unfair and very frustrating for everyone living in the other Lower Manhattan Communities.  I hope you all agree that the issue is one that affects the whole of Lower Manhattan, not just a corner of Tribeca.
 
We have accumulated over 1000 signatures (and growing) from all corners of Lower Manhattan, including the full support from the PTA at PS 397 (Spruce) and PS 276 (SBPC), for the support of Proposal 3R.  These were presented at the last CECD2 meeting, and will be resubmitted to the CB1 and to the CECD2 at the upcoming meetings as the list is continuously growing. We can also submit a copy to you.
 
2)  The issue of overcrowding
 
Please let's not forget that the initial problem is one of overcrowding and how best to distribute school children among the 4 great schools equitably and in a long term viable way; all the while preserving the existing (Tribeca) and burgeoning communities (FiDi/Seaport, North and South Battery Park City) for the sake of the families.
 
I have attached a prior email with comments from Michael Markowitz (CECD2), supported by Elizabeth Rose (DOE), highlighting their analysis that Option 3R is the most effective in reducing overcrowding at PS 234.  Ms. Rose adds "...the area
immediately south of 234 has more younger families/students and fewer children in the upper grades."  

Proposal 3R also makes better use of available seats in PS 89 then Proposal 2, and puts fewer kids at Spruce than Prop 2.  Prop 2 essentially under utilizes ps 89 at the expense of Spruce.
 
3)  "If the concern is safety around West Street, then let's address it, but not re-zone around it"
 
Under Proposal 2, I ask that you please recognize the fact that the journey is not safer for a child in Financial District to travel to South Battery Park City (PS 276), nor is it for a child in NE Tribeca to travel beyond Park Row to Spruce Street (PS 397), nor is it convenient for Gateway Plaza children to travel to North BPC (PS 89).
 
Why should we ask the majority children from all the above three communities to attend schools in communities that are not theirs, when instead we should be keeping communities together and addressing the safety concerns around West Street for a minority of parents in SW Tribeca?
 
If the concern is safety around West Street, then let's please fix it, but not re-zone around it.  Let's enforce the 35MPH speed limit, let's slow down the traffic lights, add more crossing guards and speed bumps.  Destroying the communities that have been built and are being built in Lower Manhattan, rather then enforcing safety around West Street at Murray and Chambers street, would be a huge disservice to all of Lower Manhattan.  If people don't feel a part of their communities, they will leave.
 
We understand there is no easy solution and I greatly appreciate the work you are doing.   I simply want to say that we can work together to resolve the safety concerns around West street at Murray and Chambers and keep the majority of children within their communities.  Let's build for the future.
 
Please voice your support for Proposal #3R to the CECD2 and CB1.
 

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