Greenpoint has another co-named street to celebrate—part of Monitor now bears the name of the community advocate Patricia R. Tambakis.
The New York City Council makes decisions on street co-namings. The decision to rename the intersection of Monitor Street and Driggs Avenue came from legislation passed earlier this year.
Next to both PS 110 and McGolrick Park, the location of the co-named street couldn’t be more perfect. Tambakis was a teacher and union leader at PS 19 who fought fiercely to keep the school alive and thriving, despite its eventual closure. She founded of Friends of McGolrick Park in the 1980s and “held numerous fundraisers to provide permits and arrange activities for the kids in the community to play in the park,” according to a City Council committee report.
“She organized educational programs such as D.A.R.E. to educate kids about the dangers of drugs. She served as president of the 94th Precinct’s Community Council and was the editor for The Badge, a magazine for law enforcement in the Fraternal Order of Police,” the report continues. Tambakis passed away in 2014
The Greenpoint community saw a new co-named street earlier this year with the installation of Irene Klementowicz Way on Freeman Street and Manhattan Avenue.