If you scroll through Nextdoor or a community-oriented Facebook group, it won’t be long before you see a comment or two decrying the state of our streets. It’s an issue at the top of mind for many neighbors. Council Member Lincoln Restler told Greenpointers that his office has secured $100,000 in funding to pay for additional three street cleaners.
The cleaners are affiliated with ACE Programs for the Homeless, a non-profit organization that helps secure sanitation jobs for those who have dealt with homelessness, incarceration, and addiction. They are not city sanitation workers, but a third party that the city often contracts with in order to shore up sanitation services. Restler told Greenpointers that the $100,000 comes from discretionary funding that each city council member decides how to allocate in their districts.
According to a press release, “the cleaning routes will run along the dense commercial corridors of Manhattan Avenue and Bedford Avenue five days per week as well as Driggs Avenue, Berry Street, Wythe Avenue, and Kent Avenue at least one day per week.”
Last week, Council Member Restler and Assemblymember Emily Gallagher posed for a photo op with ACE workers.
“Greenpoint and Williamsburg are vibrant, thriving communities, but the amount of trash in our streets is unacceptable. Our residents deserve to live in a clean, healthy, safe neighborhood,” said Council Member Lincoln Restler. “Less garbage means fewer rats, which improves quality of life and boosts our small businesses. ACE is a wonderful program, and I’m thrilled that we’re able to bring ACE workers to our community to help solve our street cleanliness problem.”
“Residents and visitors alike deserve a clean environment when they’re walking the streets of Greenpoint and Williamsburg, especially on our busiest commercial thoroughfares,” said Assemblymember Emily Gallagher. “This has become increasingly urgent with a citywide uptick in rats since the beginning of the pandemic. I’m grateful to Councilmember Restler for his significant investment in street cleaning and to the fabulous workers who are making it happen.”
This is good. Manuel sweepers especially on Manhattan Ave. than can get into small areas but I and many other motorists have implored the community board, Ressler and Gallagher to bring back the reduced alt. side parking that the former mayor put into place.
People including myself just sit in their cars now for two days instead of one, because there is no place to park/nive their cars and the sweepers just go down the center of the streets not doing anymore cleaning, cars idling in the summer with a.c. polluting the area and parents, workers and seniors forced to sit in their cars for one hour and one half. It it is a lose, lose, lose situation for everybody.
Agree with Paul about the ASP. Should be down to once a week. For the last two years, I was taking the bus and train into work. Now with the additional ASP I’m taking my car into work, because I can’t find parking. How is that better for the environment, MTA, or anyone else?
How about convincing the Parks Dept to replace the four trash and two recycling containers that have been removed over the past months near the Lorimer St entrance to McCarren Park. The park is heavily used and with too few containers trash fills then spills out onto the ground, of the remaining containers. And stays that way for days. It’s a party for the rats. There are NO litter containers on Greenpoint’s side streets or even busy Norman Ave, so pedestrians have nowhere to properly dispose of trash. And while you’re at it, make National Grid remove the multiple piles of wood beams & massive metal plates left abandoned for months (after checking for gas leaks) taking up parking spaces & an eyesore for residents living on Lorimer St between Norman/Nassau.
Great news, great opportunity for the workers (who should be thanked when you see them working in the streets : ), and a good use of funding $$$. I hope it makes a big difference!