Message from Councilman Mark Gjonaj
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, S 40 EPTEMBER 13-19, 2019 BTR
COUNCILMAN MARK GJONAJ
I am pleased to announce that
Cycle 9 of the New York City Council
Participatory Budgeting has officially
begun. I will be pledging 1
million dollars from my FY20 Capital
budget to brainstorm and collaborate
with my constituents and
community leaders. It is incredibly
important that my constituents of
the 13th Council District be involved
in the entire budget process to voice
their opinions and determine the
types of capital improvements they
would like in their community.
Visit http://ideas.pbnyc.org/
place/new or visit the District Office
for a PB project idea card to submit
an idea.
Volunteerism and community
activism are essential to Participatory
Budget – it is our bread and butter,
if you will. Therefore, it is crucial
to get involved and encourage
family and friends. A few volunteer
positions are Budget Delegate/Facilitator,
Poll Worker, and District
Committee. Each position is essential
to a democratic and successful
PB Cycle. Therefore, I urge you to
sign-up online https://council.nyc.
gov/pb/participate/ or by contacting
the district office at (718) 931-
1721. You will have the opportunity
to become involved with a process
that goes beyond funding technology
in schools and bus countdown
clocks.
Participatory budget is much
more than the allocation of money;
it is a platform to empower constituents
and an opportunity to be involved
in the New York City Capital
Budget process. It instills the importance
of civic engagement and the
power of democracy. Participating
Constituents are engaged from the
very beginning, from submitting
and vetting ideas to the various volunteer
positions to then voting. Constituents
who are 11 years and older
are able to actively practice the democratic
process by voting for their
favorite project. Furthermore, it empowers
and diversifies communities
by providing ballots in several different
languages. It increases accessibility
and awareness by bringing
voting booths to schools, libraries,
and green markets.
I am looking forward to my first
Participatory Budget Cycle. Therefore,
I urge you join me as a volunteer
by signing-up online https://
council.nyc.gov/pb/participate/ or
contacting the district office at (718)
931-1721 and submitting ideas online
http://ideas.pbnyc.org/place/new or
by submitting a Participatory Budget
project idea card at the district
office. Remember, the voices and
ideas of our constituents are absolutely
vital to uplifting and enhancing
communities. Together, we can
create a more active and empowered
Council District 13.
BY GENE DEFRANCIS
I’ve had several productive
conversations this week in response
to the recent ‘push’ to
form a business improvement
district in Allerton. I hope
these conversations lead to
common sense resolutions.
Let me be clear. I’m not saying
Allerton will never be a
BID. What I am saying is we
are not rushing into a BID. We
don’t ‘need’ a BID. And the insinuation
that our merchants
association is inept to accomplish
what a BID is offering is
defamation.
With no names or credit in
any of the ads or posters that
have been handed out in our
community, we have to assume
it’s everyone associated
and let them hash it out.
The bottom line is the BID
conversation is dead and if
you are friends of this association
you will stand by this decision
and stand with us. The
spirit of trust has been broken
that will take years to repair.
More over because we have
had this conversation with
the current BID ‘organizers’
about circumventing our organization,
we won’t stand for
it. A BID would not work without
us.
A BID is good when the
board is organized and community
oriented. Our board
is already organized and community
oriented. To form a
new board is ludicrous as well
as really poor team building
and relationship driven communication.
I have confi dence
that a BID cannot be organized
in Allerton without our support.
There are key milestones
before a BID can be formed in
Allerton.
A BID is not a magic wand.
You do not create a BID and
poof money starts coming in.
It takes a lot of hard work and
commitment and it could take
years to build. Years that we
have spent as volunteers to
change the image and environment
in Allerton.
For the city and outsiders to
come in and capitalize on our
work and publicly state our
merchants association can’t
do the work we have been doing
is criminal. Because disingenuous
is not a strong enough
word.
To print in a public paper
insinuating we don’t have a
great working relationship
with city agencies and elected
offi cials is also extortion. We
have been told point blank that
if we do not join a BID we will
be ‘cut out’. These are words
of war and we are and always
have been ready to fi ght.
But they especially crossed
a line when they posted our
elected offi cials images on the
bottom of their ad. Now our
elected offi cials have to feel
the brunt of angry residents
and scared merchants wondering
why they would support or
condone such actions.
But the clarifi cation is
the councilmen funded the
conversation, which we welcomed.
“No harm in talking
about it and learning about it”.
But these outsiders then began
demanding things. They
became insistent. We were not
moving fast enough for them.
Then they told us that a committee
was formed and once it
was formed we can’t go back.
They spoke to us as if we were
children and didn’t know what
was good for us.
We are one of the most powerful
merchants associations
in the city. We have many
friends inside the engine of the
city. We have accomplished
many wonderful things. So
for them to attempt to bully us
and demand things was unbelievably
naive and ignorant.
They clearly did not know the
territory and it became dangerously
obvious.
But still some merchants
did not believe we could go
head to head with the city.
They are already making
plans to sell their business and
relocate because of fear they
will lose everything if the BID
arrives. These are damages
that will be hard to repair.
But I can and will tell you
we are for starters ‘not fi ghting’
the entire city. We have
many friends and allies inside
the city. We have help. We
are fi ghting a small group of
Bronx opportunists that are
trying to bulldoze our neighborhood
with the help of NYC
Small Business Services. One
small and powerless/ ineffective
agency inside the city’s
structure.
Believe us, our cannons
are locked and loaded. We will
protect our members from the
added expense the BID will
cost them, especially those
who have supported our organization
for many years. One
small business would experience
a $3,000 annual bill that
will shut them down if a BID
was formed.
That is simply not going to
happen.
Now, we never say never.
Maybe 10, 20, 30 years from
now Allerton does form a
BID. If our members are
thriving and the foot traffi c
is where it should be I will
be the fi rst to say let consider
organizing a BID to sustain
this success.
But we say not now....and
not in the near future will
there be a BID in Allerton. It
especially won’t be dictated by
those outside of Allerton.
We will not put the cart
before the horse. We will stabilize
our shopping corridor,
reestablish the Allerton foot
traffi c fi rst, and continue to
rebuild those who are deeply
rooted in Allerton so they will
survive the BID if it were to
come about in the future.
Our goal and target has
always been to support and
clean the NYCHA properties
and other major buildings
that surround Allerton from
its drug problem. It’s what the
merchants want. It what the
residents need so they don’t
feel like prisoners inside their
own homes.
But now ending any and all
possibility for a BID is that we
have a lack of trust that has
been established as those ‘outsiders’
attempted to bypass
this merchant association to
organize said BID. We can
not trust them in doing what
is best for our community
and we at this point have suspended
our relationship with
anyone associated with organizing
a BID. We hope these
relationships are repaired but
it will take some time. Trust is
a hard thing to rebuild.
It’s painful for us because
we made it clear our position
from the beginning. The BID
will move slowly and we will
educate our members and secure
that they can survive
before going forward. To our
face and in front of one of our
councilmembers they agreed
and promised. For them to attempt
to move forward without
us, to have their employees
threaten us, can not and
will not be overlooked.
There is no successful BID
in Allerton or possibility of a
BID in Allerton without the
support of this organization.
Why? Because we have a deep
board of members who have
been in this community for decades.
We are organized and
when it comes to Allerton we
are powerful.
You can not have a BID
without our approval nor our
blessing.
The BID conversation has
been suspended as we continue
our work as a volunteer
based organization. Further
conversation incurring a BID
will be met with strong opposition,
litigation and demonstrations.
We will not abandon our
members.
Allerton is not for sale.
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